Food processor with adjustable blade assembly

ABSTRACT

A food processor includes a bowl with a removable lid. Food items are advanced into the bowl through a feed tube formed in the lid where they are cut by a blade assembly. A rotating disk is adjustable relative to the blade assembly to vary the thickness of the food items cut by the blade assembly.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED U.S. PATENT APPLICATIONS

The present application is a Continuation of U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 15/370,434, now U.S. Pat. No. 10,449,685, filed on Dec. 6,2016, entitled “FOOD PROCESSOR WITH ADJUSTABLE BLADE ASSEMBLY,” which isa Continuation-in-Part of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 14/220,203,now U.S. Pat. No. 10,105,864, entitled “FOOD PROCESSOR WITH A LOCKABLEADJUSTABLE BLADE ASSEMBLY,” filed Mar. 20, 2014, which is a divisionalof U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/769,746, now U.S. Pat. No.8,720,325, entitled “FOOD PROCESSOR WITH A LOCKABLE ADJUSTABLE BLADEASSEMBLY,” filed on Apr. 29, 2010.

U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/370,434, now U.S. Pat. No.10,449,685, is also a Continuation-in-Part of U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 15/000,712, now U.S. Pat. No. 10,582,808, entitled “FOODPROCESSING DEVICE WITH AN EXTERNALLY OPERATED ADJUSTMENT MECHANISM,”filed Jan. 19, 2016, which is a divisional of U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 14/000,416, now U.S. Pat. No. 9,265,381, entitled “FOODPROCESSING DEVICE WITH AN EXTERNALLY OPERATED ADJUSTMENT MECHANISM,”filed Sep. 23, 2013, which is a National Stage Entry ofPCT/CN2011/001487 entitled “A FOOD PROCESSING DEVICE WITH AN EXTERNALLYOPERATED ADJUSTMENT MECHANISM,” filed on Sep. 1, 2011.

U.S. patent application Ser. No. 15/370,434, now U.S. Pat. No.10,449,685, is also a Continuation-in-Part of U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 14/000,413, now U.S. Pat. No. 9,655,474, entitled “FOODPROCESSING DEVICE WITH AN EXTERNALLY OPERATED ADJUSTMENT MECHANISM,”filed on Sep. 23, 2013, which is a National Stage Entry ofPCT/CN2011/000311, entitled “A FOOD PROCESSING DEVICE WITH AN EXTERNALLYOPERATED ADJUSTMENT MECHANISM,” filed on Feb. 25, 2011.

Each of the above-identified applications are hereby incorporated byreference.

Cross-reference is made to U.S. Pat. No. 8,985,010, entitled “FoodProcessor With Cutting Blade Assembly Support,” filed Apr. 29, 2010, andU.S. Pat. No. 8,439,285, entitled “Adjustable Food Processor With GuideRamp,” filed Apr. 29, 2010, each of which is assigned to the sameassignee as the present application, each of which is herebyincorporated by reference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present disclosure relates generally to a domestic food processor,and more particularly to a food processor having a control for adjustingthe cutting thickness of the food processor.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

A food processor is a motorized domestic appliance for manipulating(e.g., chopping, slicing, dicing, shredding, grating, or blending) fooditems. Such an appliance includes a bowl with a removable lid. Fooditems are inserted into the bowl through a feed tube formed in the lidwhere they are cut by motor-driven cutting tool.

Food processors typically come equipped with a number of interchangeablecutting tools for slicing, shredding, or other food processingoperations. One common cutting tool is a rotating disk-type cutter. Sucha cutting tool includes a rotating disk having a cutting blade fixedthereto. The cutting blade is secured to the rotating disk at a locationadjacent to an aperture formed in the disk so that pieces of food cut bythe blade fall through the aperture and collect in the bottom of thebowl.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

According to one aspect of this disclosure, a food processor includes abase having a motor positioned therein, a removable bowl coupled to thebase, and a removable lid coupled to the bowl. The lid has a feed tubethat opens into the bowl. A cutting blade is positioned in the bowl anddriven by the motor to cut food items advanced through the feed tube.The food processor also includes a rotating disk upwardly and downwardlymovable relative to the cutting blade to adjust the distancetherebetween, and a user-operated pin positioned below the rotatingdisk. The user-operated pin is movable between a first position in whichthe rotating disk is prevented from moving upwardly and downwardlyrelative to the cutting blade, and a second position in which therotating disk is permitted to move upwardly and downwardly relative tothe cutting blade. In some embodiments, the rotating disk may include asleeve extending downwardly from a lower surface thereof, and thecutting blade may be coupled to a central shaft positioned in the sleeveof the rotating disk.

In some embodiments, the user-operated pin may include a pin bodyextending from a first end through a sidewall of the sleeve to a secondend received in an aperture formed in the central shaft. In someembodiments, the sidewall of the sleeve may include a first plurality ofteeth, an outer surface of the pin body may have a second plurality ofteeth extending therefrom, and a number of the first plurality of teethmay be engaged with the second plurality of teeth when the user-operatedpin is in the first position.

Additionally, in some embodiments, the first plurality of teeth may bespaced apart from the second plurality of teeth when the user-operatedpin is moved to the second position. In some embodiments, the foodprocessor may also include a spring having a first spring end positionedat a bottom of the aperture of the central shaft and a second spring endcoupled to the second end of the user-operated pin. The spring may biasthe user-operated pin in the first position. In some embodiments, aguide pin may extend outwardly from the bottom of the aperture, and thespring may extend over the guide pin.

In some embodiments, the food processor may also include a leverpivotably coupled to a sidewall of the sleeve and may have a first leverend contacting the second end of the user-operated pin. Movement of theuser-operated pin between the first position and the second position maycause the lever to pivot about an axis between a first lever positionand a second lever position. In some embodiments, the lever may extendfrom the first lever end to a second lever end. The second lever end maybe coupled with the central shaft when the lever is at the first leverposition. In some embodiments, the central shaft may have an outersurface with a plurality of teeth extending therefrom, and the secondlever end may be engaged with a number of the plurality of teeth whenthe lever is at the first lever position, thereby preventing therotating disk from moving relative to the cutting blade.

In some embodiments, the second lever end may be spaced apart from theplurality of teeth at the second lever position, thereby permittingmovement of the rotating disk relative to the cutting blade. In someembodiments, the food processor may also include a spring having a firstend coupled to a sidewall of the sleeve and a second end coupled to thesecond lever end. The spring may bias the lever in the first leverposition, thereby maintaining the user-operated pin in the firstposition and preventing movement of the rotating disk relative to thecutting blade. Additionally, in some embodiments, a button may besecured to a first end of the user-operated pin, and depressing thebutton moves the user-operated pin from the first position to the secondposition.

According to another aspect, a food slicer assembly for a food processoris disclosed. The food slicer assembly includes a cutting blade, arotating disk upwardly and downwardly movable relative to the cuttingblade to adjust the distance therebetween, and a locking mechanismpositioned below a lower surface of the rotating disk. The lockingmechanism includes a user-operated pin that is movable between a firstposition in which the locking mechanism prevents the rotating disk frommoving upwardly and downwardly relative to the cutting blade, and asecond position in which the locking mechanism permits the rotating diskto move upwardly and downwardly relative to the cutting blade.

In some embodiments, the food slicer assembly may further include asleeve extending downwardly from the lower surface of the rotating disk,and a central shaft positioned in the sleeve. The central shaft may havethe cutting blade coupled thereto. In some embodiments, the lockingmechanism may include a first plurality of teeth extending from asidewall of the sleeve. The user-operated pin may extend through thesleeve into the central shaft and may have a second plurality of teethextending therefrom. The second plurality of teeth may be engaged with anumber of the first plurality of teeth when the user-operated pin is inthe first position and spaced apart from the first plurality of teethwhen the user-operated pin is moved to the second position.

In some embodiments, the locking mechanism may include a plurality ofteeth extending from the central shaft, and a lever extending from afirst end coupled to the user-operated pin to a second end. The secondend of the lever may be engaged with a number of the teeth when theuser-operated pin is in the first position and spaced apart from theplurality of teeth when the user-operated pin is in the second position.In some embodiments, the lever may be pivotably coupled to the sleeve.

According to another aspect, the food processor includes a base having amotor positioned therein, a removable bowl coupled to the base, acutting blade positioned in the bowl and secured to a central shaftdriven by the motor, and a rotating disk having the central shaftextending therethrough. The rotating disk is upwardly and downwardlymovable between a plurality of positions relative to the cutting blade.The food processor also includes a locking mechanism positioned below alower surface of the rotating disk. The locking mechanism includes auser-operated pin extending through the rotating disk that is movablebetween a first position in which the rotating disk is prevented frommoving upwardly and downwardly relative to the cutting blade, and asecond position in which the rotating disk is permitted to move upwardlyand downwardly relative to the cutting blade.

In some embodiments, the locking mechanism may include a first pluralityof teeth extending from a sidewall of the rotating disk, and theuser-operated pin may have a second plurality of teeth extendingtherefrom. The second plurality of teeth may be engaged with a number ofthe first plurality of teeth when user-operated pin is in the firstposition and spaced apart from the first plurality of teeth when theuser-operated pin is moved to the second position.

According to another aspect of this disclosure, a food processorincludes a base having a motor positioned therein, a removable bowlcoupled to the base, and a removable lid coupled to the bowl so as todefine a processing chamber. The lid has a feed tube that opens into thebowl. The food processor also includes a blade assembly positioned inthe processing chamber and driven by the motor, and the blade assemblyhas a flange extending therefrom. A rotating disk is movably coupled tothe blade assembly, and the rotating disk has a plurality of slotsformed therein. Each of the slots is sized to receive the flange of theblade assembly. The rotating disk is movable relative to the bladeassembly between a plurality of cutting positions to produce cut fooditems of varying thicknesses, and the flange of the blade assembly isreceived into one of the plurality of slots at each of the plurality ofcutting positions.

In some embodiments, the rotating disk may include a blade supportpivotably coupled to an outer rim of the rotating disk. The plurality ofslots may be formed in the blade support. In some embodiments, the bladesupport may be movable between a first position where the flange of theblade assembly is received in one of the plurality of slots, and asecond position where the flange of the blade assembly is spaced apartfrom each of the plurality of slots. Additionally, in some embodiments,the rotating disk may be prevented from moving relative to the bladeassembly when the blade support is placed in the first position, and therotating disk may be permitted to move relative to the blade assemblywhen the blade support is placed in the second position.

In some embodiments, the outer rim of the rotating disk may have anopening defined therein, and the blade support may have a bodypositioned in the opening when the blade support is placed in the firstposition. The body of the blade support may extend outwardly from theopening when the blade support is placed in the second position.

In some embodiments, the rotating disk may include a locking deviceconfigured to maintain the blade support in the first position. In someembodiments, the locking device may include a tab extending from theblade support, and the tab may be received in a recess formed in theouter rim of the rotating disk when the blade support is placed in thefirst position.

In some embodiments, the plurality of slots may include at least fiveslots. Additionally, in some embodiments, the blade assembly may includea cutting blade secured to a mounting arm extending from a centralshaft. In some embodiments, the flange of the blade assembly received inone of the plurality of slots may be an outer edge of the cutting bladewhen the rotating disk is placed at a first cutting position, and theflange of the blade assembly received in one of the plurality of slotsmay be an arcuate lip of the mounting arm when the rotating disk isplaced at a second cutting position.

According to another aspect, a food slicer assembly for a food processoris disclosed. The food slicer assembly includes a cutting blade havingan outer edge, and a rotating disk movable to a plurality of positionsrelative to the cutting blade to adjust the distance therebetween. Therotating disk has an outer rim positioned adjacent to the outer edge ofthe cutting blade, and a blade support coupled to the outer rim, theblade support includes a plurality of slots, each of which is sized toreceive the outer edge of the cutting blade. The outer edge of thecutting blade is received in a first slot at a first position of therotating disk.

In some embodiments, the food slicer assembly may further include acentral shaft secured to an inner edge of the cutting blade, and amounting arm secured to the central shaft and positioned below thecutting blade. In some embodiments, the mounting arm may have an arcuatelip extending parallel to the outer edge of the cutting blade. The lipmay be received in the first slot of the blade support at a secondposition of the rotating disk.

In some embodiments, the blade support may include a body extending froma first end, and the first end may be hinged to the outer rim of therotating disk such that the blade support is rotatable about a verticalaxis. In some embodiments, when the rotating disk is at the firstposition, the outer edge of the cutting blade may be received in thefirst slot when the blade support is placed at a first position aboutthe vertical axis, and the outer edge of the cutting blade may be spacedapart from each of the plurality of slots when the blade support isplaced at a second position about the vertical axis.

Additionally, the first end of the body of the blade support may becoupled to the outer rim of the rotating disk via a pivot joint. Thepivot joint may have the vertical axis extending therethrough.

According to another aspect, a food processor includes a base having amotor positioned therein, a removable bowl coupled to the base, aremovable lid coupled to the bowl. The lid has a feed tube that opensinto the bowl. A blade assembly is positioned in the bowl and is drivenby the motor, and a rotating disk is movable between a plurality ofcutting positions relative to the blade assembly. The rotating disk hasa blade support that includes a slot corresponding to each of theplurality of cutting positions, each slot being sized to receive aflange of the blade assembly.

In some embodiments, the blade assembly may include a cutting bladehaving an outer edge. The rotating disk may have an outer rim positionedadjacent to the outer edge of the cutting blade, and the blade supportmay be pivotably coupled to the outer rim. In some embodiments, theblade support may be pivotable between a first position where the outeredge of the cutting blade is received in one slot of the blade support,and a second position where the outer edge of the cutting blade may bespaced apart from the blade support.

In some embodiments, the flange of the blade assembly received in one ofthe plurality of slots may be the outer edge of the cutting blade whenthe rotating disk is placed at a first cutting position.

According to another aspect of the disclosure, a food processing deviceis disclosed. The food processing device includes a base having a motorpositioned therein, a removable bowl coupled to the base, and aremovable lid coupled to the bowl so as to define a processing chamber.The lid has a feed tube that opens into the bowl. The food processingdevice also includes a blade assembly positioned in the processingchamber, which is driven by the motor and includes a cutting blade tocut food items advanced through the feed tube, and a rotating diskupwardly and downwardly movable relative to the cutting blade to adjustthe distance between an upper surface of the rotating disk and thecutting blade. The food processing device also includes an adjustmentassembly operable to move the rotating disk relative to the cuttingblade. The adjustment assembly includes a control knob coupled to theblade assembly and is positioned above the upper surface of the rotatingdisk, and a threaded sleeve coupled to the rotating disk and ispositioned in the control knob.

In some embodiments, the rotating disk may divide the processing chamberinto an upper compartment and a lower compartment, and the bladeassembly may include a mounting arm having a ramp defined therein toguide food items from the upper compartment to the lower compartment. Insome embodiments, the ramp may have an inclined surface extendingoutwardly in a radial direction from a first end to a second end.

The inclined surface may have a first angle of inclination at the firstend and a second angle of inclination at the second end. In someembodiments, the first angle of inclination may be greater than or equalto the second angle of inclination. Additionally, in some embodiments,the first angle of inclination may be approximately 25 degrees. In someembodiments, the second angle of inclination may be approximately 15degrees.

In some embodiments, the rotating disk may have a counterweight securedthereto, and the threaded sleeve may be positioned between the mountingarm and the counterweight. In some embodiments, rotation of the controlknob in a first direction may cause upward movement of the rotatingdisk, and rotation of the control knob in a second direction may causedownward movement of the rotating disk.

In some embodiments, the blade assembly may include a central shaftcoupled to the control knob, and the central shaft may be received inthe threaded sleeve. Rotation of the control knob may cause the threadedsleeve to move upwardly and downwardly along the central shaft.

According to another aspect, a food slicer assembly for a food processoris disclosed. The food slicer assembly includes a cutting blade, amounting arm, which has a ramp defined therein, that is positioned belowthe cutting blade, and a rotating disk movable to a plurality ofpositions relative to the cutting blade to adjust the distance betweenits upper surface and the cutting blade. An adjustment assembly isoperable to move the rotating disk relative to the cutting blade. Theadjustment assembly includes an internally-threaded control knobpositioned above the upper surface of the rotating disk, and anexternally-threaded sleeve coupled to the rotating disk that ispositioned in the control knob.

In some embodiments, the food slicer assembly may further include acentral shaft that is coupled at an upper end to the control knob and ispositioned in the sleeve. The mounting arm may extend outwardly from afirst end secured to the central shaft to a second end positionedadjacent to an outer rim of the rotating disk. In some embodiments, theramp may have an inclined surface extending in a radial direction fromthe first end of the mounting arm to the second end of the mounting arm.The inclined surface may have a first angle of inclination at the firstend that is greater than or equal to a second angle of inclination atthe second end. In some embodiments, the rotating disk may include acounterweight, and the sleeve may be positioned between thecounterweight and the mounting arm.

According to another aspect, a food processor includes a base having amotor positioned therein, a removable bowl coupled to the base, and aremovable lid coupled to the bowl so as to define a processing chamber.The lid has a feed tube that opens into the bowl. A cutting blade ispositioned in the bowl and driven by the motor to cut food itemsadvanced through the feed tube. A rotating disk is upwardly anddownwardly movable relative to the cutting blade to adjust the distancetherebetween. The rotating disk divides the processing chamber into anupper compartment and a lower compartment. A ramp is positioned belowthe cutting blade to guide food items from the upper compartment intothe lower compartment. The food processor further includes an adjustmentassembly operable to move the rotating disk relative to the cuttingblade. The adjustment assembly includes a user-operated control devicepositioned above the rotating disk.

In some embodiments, the adjustment assembly may include anexternally-threaded sleeve coupled to the rotating disk, and theuser-operated control device may include an internally-threaded controlknob having a grip.

According to another aspect of the disclosure, a food processor includesa base having a motor positioned therein, a removable bowl coupled tothe base, and a removable lid coupled to the bowl so as to define aprocessing chamber. The removable lid has a feed tube that opens intothe bowl. The food processor also includes a cutting assembly positionedin the processing chamber that is driven by the motor to cut food itemsadvanced through the feed tube. The cutting assembly is positionablebetween a plurality of cutting positions to produce cut food items ofvarying thicknesses. The food processor also includes an adjustmentassembly positioned in the base. The adjustment assembly includes afirst sleeve secured to the base, a second sleeve rotatably coupled tothe first sleeve, and a user-operated control device operable to rotatethe second sleeve relative to the first sleeve to move the cuttingassembly between the plurality of cutting positions. In someembodiments, the first sleeve may have an externally-threaded body, andthe second sleeve may have an internally-threaded body positioned overthe externally-threaded body of the first sleeve.

In some embodiments, the cutting assembly may include a cutting bladeand a rotating disk that may be supported by the second sleeve. In someembodiments, rotation of the second sleeve in a first direction maycause upward movement of the second sleeve and the rotating diskrelative to the cutting blade, and rotation of the second sleeve in asecond direction may cause downward movement of the second sleeve andthe rotating disk relative to the cutting blade.

Additionally, in some embodiments, the food processor may furtherinclude a drive shaft connected at a first end to the motor and at asecond end to the cutting assembly to transmit a driving force from themotor to the cutting assembly. In some embodiments, the first sleeve mayinclude a bearing rotatably supporting the drive shaft, and the driveshaft may extend through an opening defined in the second sleeve. Theopening may be sized such that the drive shaft does not contact thesecond sleeve.

In some embodiments, the food processor may further include a firstadaptor removably coupled to the rotating disk, and a second adaptorsecured to a lower end of the first adaptor. The second sleeve mayinclude a bearing rotatably supporting the second adaptor. In someembodiments, the lower end of the first adaptor may include a firstplurality of teeth, and the second adaptor may include a secondplurality of teeth interdigitated with the first plurality of teeth tosecure the second adaptor to the first adaptor.

Additionally, in some embodiments, the adjustment assembly may furthercomprise a gear assembly positioned in the base and coupled to thesecond sleeve. The gear assembly may be operable to rotate the secondsleeve relative to the first sleeve. The user-operated control devicemay be coupled to the gear assembly and be configured to operate thegear assembly such that the second sleeve is rotated relative to thefirst sleeve to move the cutting assembly between the plurality ofcutting positions.

In some embodiments, the second sleeve may have a groove definedtherein. The gear assembly may have a first gear including a firstplurality of teeth defined on an outer surface and a spline extendingfrom an inner surface thereof. The spline may be received in the grooveof the second sleeve. A second gear including a second plurality ofteeth may be interdigitated with the first plurality of teeth. Theuser-operated control device may cause rotation of the second gear andthe first gear.

In some embodiments, the user-operated control device may include alever extending outwardly from the base and positionable between aplurality of adjustment positions relative to the base. The lever may becoupled to the second gear such that movement of the lever between theplurality of adjustment positions may cause rotation of the secondsleeve relative to the first sleeve to move the cutting assembly betweenthe plurality of cutting positions.

In some embodiments, the food processor may further include a lockingmechanism to inhibit movement of the lever. Additionally, in someembodiments, the locking mechanism may include a plurality of notchesformed in the second gear, and each notch may correspond to one of theplurality of adjustment positions. The locking mechanism may alsoinclude a pin positioned below the second gear that is configured to bereceived in each of the plurality of notches, and a spring coupled tothe pin. The spring may bias the pin into the notch corresponding to apresent adjustment position of the lever to inhibit movement of thelever.

According to another aspect, the food processor includes a base having amotor positioned therein, a removable bowl coupled to the base, and aremovable lid coupled to the bowl so as to define a processing chamber.The lid has a feed tube that opens into the bowl. The food processoralso includes a cutting assembly, which is positioned in the processingchamber and driven by the motor to cut food items advanced through thefeed tube. The cutting assembly includes a cutting blade and a rotatingdisk having an upper surface. The rotating disk is upwardly anddownwardly movable relative to the cutting blade to adjust the distancebetween the upper surface of the rotating disk and the cutting blade.The food processor also has an adjustment assembly including ascrew-type drive assembly positioned in the base. The screw-type driveassembly is operable to move the rotating disk relative to the cuttingblade while the rotating disk and the cutting assembly is driven by themotor.

In some embodiments, the screw-type drive assembly may support therotating disk. Rotation of the screw-type drive assembly in a firstdirection may cause upward movement of the rotating disk, and rotationof the screw-type drive assembly in a second direction may causedownward movement of the rotating disk.

In some embodiments, the screw-type drive assembly may include anexternally-threaded first sleeve and an internally-threaded secondsleeve positioned over the first sleeve. The rotating disk may besupported by the second sleeve such that rotation of the second sleevein the first direction may cause upward movement of the second sleeveand the rotating disk and rotation of the second sleeve in the seconddirection may cause downward movement of the second sleeve and therotating disk.

In some embodiments, the adjustment assembly may further include a gearassembly positioned in the base and coupled to the second sleeve. Thegear assembly may be configured to rotate the second sleeve relative tothe first sleeve. Additionally, in some embodiments, the adjustmentassembly may further include a lever coupled to the screw-type driveassembly. The lever may extend outwardly from the base and be movablerelative to the base, and movement of the lever may cause the screw-typedrive assembly to move the rotating disk relative to the cutting blade.In some embodiments, the food processor may include a locking mechanismto inhibit movement of the lever.

According to another aspect, the food processor includes a base having amotor positioned therein, a removable bowl coupled to the base, and aremovable lid coupled to the bowl so as to define a processing chamber.The lid has a feed tube that opens into the bowl. A cutting assembly ispositioned in the processing chamber and driven by the motor to cut fooditems advanced through the feed tube. The cutting assembly ispositionable between a plurality of cutting positions to produce cutfood items of varying thicknesses. An adjustment assembly is positionedin the base that is operable to move the cutting assembly between theplurality of cutting positions while the cutting assembly is driven bythe motor.

In some embodiments, the adjustment assembly may include a leverextending outwardly from the base. The lever may be positionable betweena plurality of adjustment positions corresponding to the plurality ofcutting positions of the cutting assembly such that movement of thelever between the plurality of adjustment positions moves the cuttingassembly between the plurality of cutting positions. In someembodiments, the adjustment assembly may include a screw-type driveassembly operable to move the cutting assembly between the plurality ofcutting positions, and a second motor rotatably coupled to thescrew-type drive assembly. The second motor may be configured to operatethe screw-type drive assembly to move the cutting assembly between theplurality of cutting positions when the second motor is energized.

According to another aspect, a food processor includes a base having amotor positioned therein, a bowl removably coupled to the base, and alid removably coupled to the bowl so as to define a processing chamber.The lid has a feed tube that opens into the bowl. The food processoralso includes a cutting assembly positioned in the processing chamberand driven by the motor to cut food items advanced through the feedtube. The cutting assembly is positionable between a plurality ofcutting positions to produce cut food items of varying thicknesses. Thefood processor includes an adjustment assembly that is operable to movethe cutting assembly between the plurality of cutting positions whilethe cutting assembly is driven by the motor. The adjustment assemblyincludes a sleeve rotatably coupled to the base, a gear assemblypositioned in the base and operable to rotate the sleeve, and auser-operated control device configured to operate the gear assembly torotate the sleeve. In the food processor, rotation of the sleeve causesthe cutting assembly to move between the plurality of cutting positionswhile the cutting assembly is driven by the motor.

In some embodiments, the user-operated control device may include acontrol knob having a grip and a shaft extending inwardly from thecontrol knob into the base.

In some embodiments, the cutting assembly may include a cutting bladeand a rotating disk. Rotation of the sleeve in a first direction maycause upward movement of the rotating disk relative to the cuttingblade, and rotation of the sleeve in a second direction may causedownward movement of the rotating disk relative to the cutting blade.

Additionally, in some embodiments, the gear assembly may include a firstgear including a first plurality of teeth, and the first gear may bemovably coupled to the sleeve such that rotation of the first gearcauses rotation of the sleeve. The gear assembly may also include asecond gear including a second plurality of teeth interdigitated withthe first plurality of teeth such that rotation of the second gearcauses rotation of the first gear. In some embodiments, the first gearmay be a worm gear.

In some embodiments, the user-operated control device may include a gripformed on the second gear, and the grip may be operable by a user torotate the second gear.

In some embodiments, the user-operated control device may include a ringhaving a third plurality of teeth defined on an inner surface. The thirdplurality of teeth may be interdigitated with a number of the secondplurality of teeth such that rotation of the ring causes rotation of thesecond gear. In some embodiments, the bowl may include a lower rim andthe ring may be rotatably coupled to the lower wall of the bowl. In someembodiments, the ring may have a grip formed thereon that is operable bya user to rotate the ring.

Additionally, in some embodiments, the food processor may also include adrive shaft configured to transmit a driving force from the motor to thecutting assembly. The drive shaft may extend through an opening definedin the sleeve, and the opening may be sized such that the sleeve isspaced apart from the drive shaft.

In some embodiments, the user-operated control device may include alever extending outwardly from the base and movable relative to thebase. The lever may be coupled to the gear assembly such that movementof the lever relative to the base causes the gear assembly to rotate thesleeve.

According to another aspect, the food processor includes a base having amotor positioned therein, a bowl removably coupled to the base, and alid removably coupled to the bowl so as to define a processing chamber.The lid has a feed tube that opens into the bowl. The food processoralso includes a cutting assembly positioned in the processing chamberand driven by the motor to cut food items advanced through the feedtube. The cutting assembly is positionable between a plurality ofcutting positions to produce cut food items of varying thicknesses. Thefood processor also includes an adjustment assembly having auser-operated control device that is operable to move the cuttingassembly between the plurality of cutting positions while the cuttingassembly is driven by the motor. The user-operated control deviceincludes a shaft extending outwardly from the base and a control knobcoupled to the shaft, and rotation of the control knob causes thecutting assembly to move between the plurality of cutting positionswhile the cutting assembly is driven by the motor.

In some embodiments, the adjustment assembly may include a gear assemblylocated in the base that is operable to move the cutting assemblybetween the plurality of cutting positions. Rotation of the control knobmay cause the gear assembly to move the cutting assembly between theplurality of cutting positions.

In some embodiments, the adjustment assembly may further include anadaptor having a first end coupled to the cutting assembly, and a sleeverotatably coupled to the base and to a second end of the adaptor. Thesleeve may have an inner surface with a groove defined therein. The gearassembly of the food processor may include a first gear including afirst plurality of teeth defined on an outer surface and a splineextending from an inner surface. The spline may be received in thegroove of the sleeve such that rotation of the first gear causesrotation of the sleeve.

In some embodiments, the gear assembly may include a rack and pinionconfigured to translate rotation of the control knob into rotation ofthe first gear. In some embodiments, the rack may include a secondplurality of teeth interdigitated with the first plurality of teeth ofthe first gear. Additionally, in some embodiments, the control knob maybe secured to a first end of the shaft and the pinion may be secured toa second end of the shaft. The pinion may include a third plurality ofteeth interdigitated with a fourth plurality of teeth defined on therack.

In some embodiments, the first gear may be a worm gear and the gearassembly may include a second gear including a second plurality of teethinterdigitated with a number of the first plurality of teeth of the wormgear.

In some embodiments, the cutting assembly may include a cutting bladeand a rotating disk, and rotation of the control knob in a firstdirection may cause upward movement of the rotating disk relative to thecutting blade, and rotation of the control knob in a second directionmay cause downward movement of the rotating disk relative to the cuttingblade.

According to another aspect, a food processor includes a base having amotor positioned therein, a bowl removably coupled to the base, and alid removably coupled to the bowl so as to define a processing chamber.The lid has a feed tube that opens into the bowl. The food processoralso includes a cutting assembly positioned in the processing chamberand driven by the motor to cut food items advanced through the feedtube. The cutting assembly is positionable between a plurality ofcutting positions to produce cut food items of varying thicknesses. Thefood processor also includes an adjustment assembly that has a gearassembly positioned in the base and a user-operated control device. Thegear assembly is operable to move the cutting assembly between theplurality of cutting positions while the cutting assembly is driven bythe motor. The user-operated control device includes a thumbwheelpositioned in a slot defined in the base. The thumbwheel is configuredto operate the gear assembly to move the cutting assembly.

According to another aspect, a food processor includes a base having amotor positioned therein, a bowl removably coupled to the base, and alid removably coupled to the bowl so as to define a processing chamber.The bowl is configured to rotate relative to the base about an axis, andthe lid has a feed tube that opens into the bowl. The food processoralso includes a cutting assembly positioned in the processing chamberand driven by the motor to cut food items advanced through the feedtube. The cutting assembly includes a cutting blade and a rotating diskhaving an upper surface. The rotating disk is movable relative to thecutting blade to adjust a distance defined between the upper surface ofthe rotating disk and the cutting blade. The food processor alsoincludes an adjustment assembly positioned in the base. The adjustmentassembly is operable to move the rotating disk relative to the cuttingblade while the cutting assembly is driven by the motor. The bowl isconfigured to engage the adjustment assembly such that rotation of thebowl in a first direction about the axis causes upward movement of therotating disk relative to the cutting blade, and rotation of the bowl ina second direction causes downward movement of the rotating diskrelative to the cutting blade.

In some embodiments, the adjustment assembly may include an adaptorcoupled to the rotating disk, a sleeve rotatably coupled to the adaptorand to the base, and a gear assembly positioned in the base. The gearassembly may be configured to translate rotation of the bowl intorotation of the sleeve. Rotation of the sleeve may cause movement of therotating disk relative to the cutting blade.

In some embodiments, the sleeve may have a groove defined therein. Thegear assembly may include a first gear including a first plurality ofteeth defined on an outer surface and a spline extending from an innersurface. The spline may be received in the groove of the sleeve suchthat rotation of the first gear causes rotation of the sleeve. The gearassembly may also include a second gear including a second plurality ofteeth interdigitated with the first plurality of teeth such thatrotation of the second gear causes rotation of the first gear.

Additionally, in some embodiments, the bowl may include a thirdplurality of teeth that are interdigitated with a number the secondplurality of teeth of the second gear such that rotation of the bowlabout the axis causes rotation of the second gear. In some embodiments,the bowl may include an inner wall and an arm extending inwardly fromthe inner wall to a first end. The first end of the arm may have thethird plurality of teeth defined thereon.

In some embodiments, the base may have a slot defined therein sized toreceive the first end of the arm. Additionally, in some embodiments, theslot may include a first section in which the bowl is engaged with theadjustment assembly and a second section in which the bowl is disengagedwith the adjustment assembly.

In some embodiments, the food processor may further include a driveshaft configured to transmit a driving force from the motor to thecutting assembly, and the drive shaft may extend through an openingdefined in the sleeve. The opening may be sized such that the sleeve isspaced apart from the drive shaft. Additionally, in some embodiments,the food processor may include a drive stem coupled to the drive shaft.The cutting assembly may further include a blade carrier having thecutting blade secured thereto, and the drive stem may have a keyed endthat is received in a corresponding socket defined in the blade carrier.In some embodiments, the lid may include a sleeve that contacts an upperend of the blade carrier to position the blade carrier on the drivestem.

In some embodiments, the food processor may further include a lockingmechanism configured to inhibit rotation of the bowl about the axis. Insome embodiments, the locking mechanism may include a pin extending froma lower surface of the bowl, and a plurality of notches defined in anupper surface of base. Each notch may be sized to receive the pin of thebowl.

According to another aspect, a food processor includes a base having amotor positioned therein, a bowl removably coupled to the base, and alid removably coupled to the bowl so as to define a processing chamber.The bowl is configured to rotate relative to the base about an axis, andthe lid has a feed tube that opens into the bowl. The food processoralso includes a cutting assembly positioned in the processing chamberand driven by the motor to cut food items advanced through the feedtube. The cutting assembly is positionable between a plurality ofcutting positions to produce cut food items of varying thicknesses. Thefood processor includes an adjustment assembly attached to the base. Theadjustment assembly is operable to move the cutting assembly between theplurality of cutting positions while the cutting assembly is driven bythe motor. The bowl is configured to engage the adjustment assembly suchthat rotation of the bowl about the axis operates the adjustmentassembly to move the cutting assembly between the plurality of cuttingpositions.

In some embodiments, the adjustment assembly may include an adaptorcoupled to the cutting assembly, a sleeve rotatably coupled to theadaptor and to the base, and a gear rotatably coupled to the base. Thegear may be configured to translate rotation of the bowl into rotationof the sleeve, and rotation of the sleeve may cause movement of thecutting assembly between the plurality of cutting positions.

In some embodiments, the sleeve may have a groove defined therein, andthe gear may include a first plurality of teeth defined on an outersurface and a spline extending from an inner surface. The spline may bereceived in the groove of the sleeve such that rotation of the gearcauses rotation of the sleeve, and the bowl may include a secondplurality of teeth that are interdigitated with the first plurality ofteeth such that rotation of the bowl causes rotation of the gear.

In some embodiments, the adaptor may include a first adaptor removablycoupled to the cutting assembly and a second adaptor torsionally securedto a lower end of the first adaptor. The sleeve may include a bearingrotatably supporting the second adaptor. Additionally, in someembodiments, the lower end of the first adaptor may include a firstplurality of teeth. The second adaptor may include a second plurality ofteeth interdigitated with the first plurality of teeth to torsionallysecure the second adaptor to the first adaptor.

In some embodiments, the gear may be a first gear movably coupled to thesleeve such that rotation of the first gear causes rotation of thesleeve. The first gear may include a first plurality of teeth, and theadjustment assembly may further include a second gear including a secondplurality of teeth interdigitated with the first plurality of teeth suchthat rotation of the second gear causes rotation of the first gear.

In some embodiments, the bowl may include an inner wall and an armextending inwardly from the inner wall to a first end. The first end ofthe arm may have a third plurality of teeth defined thereon that areinterdigitated with the second plurality of teeth of the second gearsuch that rotation of the bowl about the axis causes rotation of thesecond gear.

According to another aspect, a food processor includes a base having amotor positioned therein, a bowl removably coupled to the base, and alid removably coupled to the bowl so as to define a processing chamber.The bowl is configured to rotate about an axis relative to the base, andthe lid has a feed tube that opens into the bowl. A cutting assembly ispositioned in the processing chamber and driven by the motor to cut fooditems advanced through the feed tube. The cutting assembly ispositionable between a plurality of cutting positions to produce cutfood items of varying thicknesses. The food processor also includes anadjustment assembly having a gear assembly positioned in the base, andthe gear assembly is operable to move the cutting assembly between theplurality of cutting positions while the cutting assembly is driven bythe motor. The bowl is configured to engage the gear assembly such thatrotation of the bowl about the axis relative to the base operates theadjustment assembly to move the cutting assembly between the pluralityof cutting positions.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The detailed description particularly refers to the following figures,in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a food processor;

FIG. 2 is a partial cross-sectional view of the food processor of FIG.1;

FIG. 3 is a view similar to FIG. 2, showing the rotating disk of thefood slicer assembly of FIG. 2 in another position relative to thecutting blade;

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the food slicer assembly of FIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is a partial cross-sectional view of the food slicer assembly ofFIG. 2 taken along the line 5-5 shown in FIG. 4;

FIG. 6 is a fragmentary perspective view of a blade support of the foodslicer assembly of FIG. 2;

FIG. 7 is a partial cross-sectional view of another embodiment of a foodprocessor;

FIG. 8 is a view similar to FIG. 7, showing the rotating disk of thefood slicer assembly of FIG. 7 in another position relative to thecutting blade;

FIG. 9 is a perspective view of a food processor;

FIG. 10 is a partial cross-sectional view of the food processor of FIG.1;

FIG. 11 is a view similar to FIG. 10, showing the rotating disk of thefood slicer assembly of FIG. 10 in another position relative to thecutting blade;

FIG. 12 is a perspective view of the food slicer assembly of FIG. 10;

FIG. 13 is a partial cross-sectional view of the food slicer assembly ofFIG. 10 taken along the line 13-13 shown in FIG. 12;

FIG. 14 is a fragmentary perspective view of a blade support of the foodslicer assembly of FIG. 10;

FIG. 15 is a partial cross-sectional view of another embodiment of afood processor;

FIG. 16 is a view similar to FIG. 15, showing the rotating disk of thefood slicer assembly of FIG. 15 in another position relative to thecutting blade;

FIG. 17 is a perspective view of a food processor;

FIG. 18 is a partial cross-sectional view of the food processor of FIG.17;

FIG. 19 is a view similar to FIG. 18, showing the rotating disk of thefood slicer assembly in another position relative to the cutting blade;

FIG. 20 is a perspective view of a food slicer assembly of the foodprocessor of FIG. 17;

FIG. 21 is a partial cross sectional view of the food slicer assembly ofFIG. 20 taken along the line 21-21; and

FIG. 22 is a partial cross sectional view of the food slicer assembly ofFIG. 20 taken along the line 22-22 showing the angle of inclination ofthe ramp;

FIG. 23 is a perspective view of a food processor;

FIG. 24 is an exploded, partial cross-sectional perspective view of thefood processor of FIG. 23;

FIG. 25 is a partial cross-sectional side elevation view of the foodprocessor of FIG. 23 showing a cutting assembly that includes a rotatingdisk and a cutting blade;

FIG. 26 is a view similar to FIG. 25 showing the rotating disk inanother position relative to the cutting blade;

FIG. 27 is an exploded, partial cross-sectional perspective view of thebase of the food processor of FIG. 23;

FIG. 28 is a partial cross-sectional view of the base of the foodprocessor of FIG. 23 taken along the line 28-28 of FIG. 27;

FIG. 29 is a perspective view of another embodiment of a food processor;

FIG. 30 is a partial cross-sectional side elevation view of the foodprocessor of FIG. 23 including another embodiment of a cutting assemblyand removable lid;

FIG. 31 is a partial cross-sectional side elevation view of the foodprocessor similar to FIG. 30;

FIG. 32 is a partial cross-sectional perspective view of anotherembodiment of a base for a food processor;

FIG. 33 is a perspective view of another embodiment of a food processor;

FIG. 34 is a partial cross-sectional perspective view of the foodprocessor of FIG. 33;

FIG. 35 is a partial cross-sectional perspective view of anotherembodiment of a base for the food processor of FIG. 33;

FIG. 36 is a perspective view of another embodiment of a food processor;

FIG. 37 is a cross-sectional top plan view of the food processor of FIG.36;

FIG. 38 is a perspective view of another embodiment of a food processorshowing another embodiment of a base;

FIG. 39 is a cross-sectional side elevation view of another embodimentof a removable bowl for use with the base of FIG. 38;

FIG. 40 is a bottom plan view of the removable bowl of FIG. 39;

FIG. 41 is a top plan view of the removable bowl of FIG. 39 attached tothe base of FIG. 38; and

FIG. 42 is a cross-sectional elevation view of another embodiment of afood processor.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

While the concepts of the present disclosure are susceptible to variousmodifications and alternative forms, specific exemplary embodimentsthereof have been shown by way of example in the drawings and willherein be described in detail. It should be understood, however, thatthere is no intent to limit the concepts of the present disclosure tothe particular forms disclosed, but on the contrary, the intention is tocover all modifications, equivalents, and alternatives falling withinthe spirit and scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims.

Referring to FIGS. 1-6, a food processor 10 is shown. One example of afood processor is the KitchenAid® 12-Cup Ultra Wide Mouth™ FoodProcessor, Base Model No. KFPW760OB, which is commercially availablefrom Whirlpool Corporation of Benton Harbor, Mich., U.S.A. The foodprocessor 10 has a base 12 that houses a motor 14 (shown schematicallyin FIG. 2) and a control unit (not shown). Under the control of thecontrol unit, the motor's output shaft 16 drives a cutting blade 18 (seeFIG. 2) to cut food items such as cheeses, meats, fruits, andvegetables. The base 12 also includes one or more buttons, switches,dials, or other types of controls 20. A user operates the controls 20 tocontrol the operation of the motor 14 and hence the food processor 10.For instance, one of the controls 20 may be operable to turn the motor14 on and off, while another control 20 may change the motor's speed.

As will be understood by those skilled in the art, the control unit maycomprise analog and/or digital circuitry to process electrical signalsreceived from the motor 14 (or other components of the food processor10) and provide electrical control signals to the motor or othercomponents of the food processor 10. For example, the control unit maybe embodied as a microcontroller that executes firmware routines tocontrol the operation of the food processor 10.

A removable bowl 22 is secured to the base 12. The bowl's handlefacilitates placement of the bowl 22 on the base 12. The bowl 22includes a removable lid 26 secured to its upper peripheral edge. Thelid 26 has a feed tube 28 formed thereon through which food items suchas cheeses, meats, fruits, and vegetables are inserted into the bowl 22to be processed by the food processor 10. Collectively, the lid 26 andthe bowl 22 define a processing chamber 24 where food items areprocessed by the cutting blade 18.

The bowl 22, lid 26, and feed tube 28 are generally made of atransparent or translucent plastic material, so that the contents of thefood processor 10 can be viewed by a user without removing the lid 26from the bowl 22. Moreover, one or more locking mechanisms may be usedto lock the bowl to the base 12 and the lid 26 to the bowl 22.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, when the removable bowl 22 is secured to thebase 12, the output shaft 16 of the motor 14 is coupled to a drive stem30. The drive stem 30 is in turn coupled to a food slicer assembly 32.As shown in FIGS. 2-4, the food slicer assembly 32 includes a rotatingdisk 34 and a blade assembly 36, with the cutting blade 18 being onecomponent thereof. The rotating disk 34 effectively divides theprocessing chamber 24 into an upper compartment 38 located between thedisk 34 and the lid 26, and a lower compartment 40 located below therotating disk 34. A vertical distance, D, between the cutting edge 42 ofthe cutting blade 18 and the upper surface 44 of the rotating disk 34defines a cutting thickness. In other words, the thickness of the piecesof food items cut by the food processor 10 is determined by the distanceD between the cutting edge 42 of the cutting blade 18 and the uppersurface 44 of the rotating disk 34. When the distance D between thecutting edge 42 of the cutting blade 18 and the upper surface 44 of therotating disk 34 is increased, thicker pieces of food items are created,with thinner pieces of food items being created when the distance Dbetween the cutting edge 42 of the cutting blade 18 and the uppersurface 44 of the rotating disk 34 is decreased. As will be discussed ingreater detail below, the rotating disk 34 is movable upwardly ordownwardly between a plurality of cutting positions relative to thecutting blade 18 to vary the cutting thickness of the food processor 10,thereby creating thicker or thinner pieces of cut food items.

As shown in FIGS. 2-5, the blade assembly 36 includes a central shaft 46that extends from a lower end 48 to an upper end 50. The lower end 48receives the drive stem 30, thereby coupling the slicer assembly 32 tothe output shaft 16 such that the slicer assembly 32 may be driven bythe motor 14. The blade assembly 36 also includes a hub 52 positioned atthe upper end 50 of the central shaft 46. As shown in FIG. 2, a tip 54of the hub 52 is received in a guide sleeve 56 extending downward fromthe underside of the lid 26.

An inner edge 58 of the cutting blade 18 is received in a slot 60 formedbetween the hub 52 and the upper end 50 of the central shaft 46. Asshown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the cutting blade 18 is secured within the slot60 such that substantial deflection of the cutting blade 18 is inhibitedwhen the cutting blade 18 cuts food items in the processing chamber 24.The cutting blade 18 is also secured to a mounting arm 62 extending awayfrom the upper end 50 of the central shaft 46 to an end 64. A number offasteners 66 (i.e., screws) positioned at a rear edge 68 of the cuttingblade 18 extend into the mounting arm 62, thereby rigidly securing thecutting blade 18 to the mounting arm 62. It will be appreciated that inother embodiments the fasteners 66 may take the form of T-stakes, pins,posts, or other structures capable of securing the cutting blade 18 tothe mounting arm 62. Additionally, the mounting arm 62 may include anovermold that receives the cutting blade 18.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the blade assembly 36 also includes a pair offlanges 70 extending beyond the end 64 of the mounting arm 62. One ofthe flanges 70 is an outer edge 72 of the cutting blade 18. Anotherflange 70 is an arcuate-shaped lip 74 extending outwardly from the end64 of the mounting arm 62 that is parallel to the outer edge 72 of thecutting blade 18. As will be discussed in greater detail below, at leastone of the flanges 70 is received in one of a plurality of slots 76formed in the rotating disk 34 at each of the cutting positions.

The rotating disk 34 includes a planar body 80 and a central sleeve 82extending downwardly from a lower surface 84 thereof. It will beappreciated that one or more of the components of the rotating disk 34may be formed from plastic or a metallic material. The rotating disk 34includes a passageway 86 that extends through the sleeve 82 and receivesthe central shaft 46 of the blade assembly 36. The planar body 80 alsohas a contoured opening 88 extending from the upper surface 44 to thelower surface 84. The contoured opening 88 is sized to receive themounting arm 62 of the blade assembly 36. When the blade assembly 36 ispositioned in the rotating disk 34, a gap or throat 92 is definedbetween the cutting edge 42 and the body 80, as shown in FIG. 4.

During operation, the motor 14 causes the blade assembly 36 to rotate.The blade assembly 36 acts on a sidewall 94 of the sleeve 82 such thatthe rotating disk 34 and the blade assembly 36 rotate together. Fooditems inserted through the feed tube 28 are urged into contact with theupper surface 44 of the rotating disk 34 while being acted upon (i.e.,cut) by the cutting blade 18. Cut food items, along with other fooditems small enough to fit within the throat 92, pass from the uppercompartment 38 into the lower compartment 40 through the throat 92.

As best seen in FIGS. 2, 3 and 5, the mounting arm 62 has a ramp 95defined therein, which guides food items from the throat 92 into thelower compartment 40 of the bowl 22. The surface 96 of the ramp 95 issloped downward from an upper end 97 positioned adjacent to the cuttingedge 42 to a lower end 98. As shown in FIG. 5, the surface 96 extendsradially outward from the central shaft 46 to the end 64 of the mountingarm 62. The angle of inclination or slope of the surface 96 changesalong the radially length of the surface 96, increasing fromapproximately 15 degrees at the end 64 to approximately 25 degrees nearthe central shaft 46. As shown in FIG. 5, the surface 96 has an angle ofinclination α of approximately 22 degrees. In other embodiments, thesurface 96 may be convex or concave in one or more directions. Thecentral shaft 46 and the end 64 of the mounting arm 62 act as sidewallsfor the surface 96 such that food items entering the throat 92 areguided down the ramp 95. In that way, the surface 96 is encapsulated orcaptured, thereby reducing the potential for food items to traveloutside of the processing path and thus reducing unwanted debris.

A rim 90 extends upwardly from the outer perimeter of the disk's planarbody 80. The rotating disk 34 has a diameter that is slightly less thanthe inner diameter of the bowl 22 such that the rim 90 is positionedadjacent to, but spaced slightly apart from, the inner wall of the bowlto permit rotation of the disk 34 within the bowl 22. The rotating disk34 also includes a blade support 100 pivotably coupled to the rim 90.

As best seen in FIG. 6, the blade support 100 has the plurality of slots76 formed therein. Each of the slots 76 extends parallel to the outeredge 72 of the cutting blade 18, and each of the slots 76 is sized toreceive one of the flanges 70. In the illustrative embodiment, fiveslots 76 are formed in the blade support 100, and the slots 76 arespaced apart from each other by two millimeters. It will be appreciatedthat in other embodiments the blade support 100 may include additionalor fewer slots and the spacing between the slots may be adjusted.

The blade support 100 has a body 102 extending from an end 104 hinged tothe rim 90 at a pivot joint 106. The pivot joint 106 includes acylindrical pivot pin 108 that extends through, and is positioned in,the rim 90 and the end 104. It will be appreciated that in otherembodiments the pivot pin 108 may be formed as part of the blade support100. As shown in FIGS. 4 and 6, the blade support 100 pivots relative tothe rim 90 about an axis 112 defined by the pivot joint 106 between anengaged position and a disengaged position.

When the blade support 100 is in the engaged position (see FIGS. 2 and3), one of the flanges 70 of the blade assembly 36 is received in acorresponding slot 76. In the engaged position, the body 102 is fullypositioned in an opening 110 formed in the rim 90. When the bladesupport 100 is pivoted to the disengaged position, the body 102 extendsoutwardly from the opening 110, as shown in FIG. 6. In the disengagedposition, the slots 76 are spaced apart from the flanges 70 of the bladeassembly 36.

The rotating disk 34 includes a locking device 114 that secures theblade support 100 in the engaged position. In the illustrativeembodiment, the locking device 114 includes a rectangular tab 116extending from an end 118 of the body 102. When the blade support 100 isin the engaged position, the tab 116 is received in a recess 120 formedin the rim 90. Another recess 122 formed in the end 118 of the body 102permits a user to apply sufficient force to release the blade support100. It will be appreciated that in other embodiments the locking device114 may take the form of a latch, pin, or other mechanism configured tomaintain the blade support 100 in the engaged position.

As discussed above, the rotating disk 34 is movable upwardly anddownwardly between a plurality of cutting positions relative to thecutting blade 18. As shown in FIG. 2, in one cutting position of therotating disk 34, the outer edge 72 of the cutting blade 18 is receivedin the upper slot 124 of the blade support 100. In another cuttingposition, the lip 74 of the mounting arm 62 is received in the upperslot 124 of the blade support 100. In other cutting positions, the lip74 may be positioned in any of the other slots 76 of the blade support100. It will be appreciated that in other embodiments both flanges 70 ofthe blade assembly 36 may be received in slots 76 of the rotating disk34. Additionally, in other embodiments, the blade assembly 36 mayinclude only a single flange 70, such as, for example, the outer edge 72of the cutting blade, which is received in a slot 76 at each of thecutting positions. In addition to providing support to the cutting blade18, the engagement of one of the flanges 70 with one of the slots 76inhibits or prevents the upward and downward movement of the rotatingdisk 34 when the blade support 100 is in the engaged position.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the food slicer assembly 32 includes aseparate locking mechanism 130 positioned below the lower surface 84 ofthe rotating disk 34 that is configured to prevent the upward anddownward movement of the rotating disk 34. In that way, the rotatingdisk 34 can be locked at one cutting position relative to the cuttingblade 18. In the illustrative embodiment, the locking mechanism 130 isalso configured to prevent the blade assembly 36 from rotating relativeto the rotating disk 34.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the locking mechanism 130 includes auser-operated pin 132. The term “user-operated pin” as used hereinrefers to a pin that is manually operated by the user without the use ofa tool. This is distinct from, and in contrast to, a set screw, hexbolt, or other fastener that is operated by the user through the use ofa wrench, screw driver, or other tool. The user-operated pin 132includes an elongated shaft 134 extending from an end 136 positionedoutside of the sleeve 82 to an end 138 positioned in an aperture 140defined in the central shaft 46. A button-head 142 sized to receive afinger of a user is formed at the end 136 of the shaft 134. The outersurface 144 of the shaft 134 includes a smooth section 146 and anothersection having a plurality of teeth 148 extending therefrom.

The shaft 134 of the user-operated pin 132 extends through avertically-extending slot 150 defined in the sidewall 94 of the sleeve82. The sidewall 94 includes a plurality of teeth 152 that extend intothe slot 150. As indicated by arrow 154 in FIG. 2, the shaft 134 ismovable between a locked position, in which the teeth 148 of the shaft134 interdigitate or engage with a number of the teeth 152 of thesidewall 94, and an unlocked position, in which the teeth 148 of theuser-operated pin are spaced apart from the teeth 152 of the sleeve. Inthe locked position, the rotating disk 34 is prevented from movingupward and downward relative to the cutting blade 18. It will beappreciated that in other embodiments the central shaft 46 may have anumber of teeth configured to engage with the teeth 148 of theuser-operated pin 132. It will also be appreciated that in otherembodiments the user-operated pin 132, central shaft 46, and sleeve 82may have any combination of slots, grooves, flanges, or other structuressuitable for locking the rotating disk 34 in position relative to thecutting blade 18.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the aperture 140 defined in the central shaft46 extends inwardly to a bottom 160. A cylindrical guide pin 162 ispositioned in an opening 164 formed at the bottom 160 of the aperture140 and extends away from the bottom 160 to an end. A spring 168 extendsover the guide pin 162 is coupled at a spring end 170 to the end 138 ofthe user-operated pin 132. It will be appreciated that in otherembodiments the guide pin 162 may take the form of a cross, hexagon, orother shape to provide guidance and stability to the spring 168. Thespring 168 biases the user-operated pin 132 away from the bottom 160 ofthe aperture 140 thereby engaging the teeth 148 of the user-operated pinwith the teeth 152 of the sleeve.

To change the distance D between the cutting edge 42 of the cuttingblade 18 and the upper surface 44 of the rotating disk 34, the userunlocks the blade support 100 from the rim 90 and pivots the bladesupport 100 about the axis 112 from the engaged position to thedisengaged position. The user then presses the button-head 142 todepress the user-operated pin 132. The spring 168 is compressed and theteeth 148 are moved out of contact with the teeth 152 of the sleeve 82.When the teeth 148 of the user-operated pin are spaced apart from theteeth 152 of the sleeve, the user may slide the rotating disk 34upwardly or downwardly to another cutting position.

Once the rotating disk 34 is at the desired cutting position, the userreleases the button-head 142, and the spring 168 urges the user-operatedpin 132 away from the bottom 160 of the aperture 140, thereby reengagingthe teeth 148 with the teeth 152 and locking the rotating disk 34 intothe desired cutting position. The user pivots the blade support 100 fromthe disengaged position back to the engaged position, thereby preventingsubstantial deflection of the cutting blade 18 and providing anadditional locking feature to prevent the upward/downward movement ofthe rotating disk 34 relative to the cutting blade 18.

It will be appreciated that in other embodiments the slicer assembly 32may not include the blade support 100. In such embodiments, changing thedistance D between the cutting edge 42 of the cutting blade 18 and theupper surface 44 of the rotating disk 34 would involve operating onlythe user-operated pin 132 of the locking mechanism 130. Similarly, inother embodiments including the blade support 100, the locking mechanism130 may be omitted and replaced with a different thickness adjustmentassembly operable by a user to vary the cutting thickness of the foodprocessor 10. In those embodiments, changing the distance D between thecutting edge 42 of the cutting blade 18 and the upper surface 44 of therotating disk 34 would involve, first, moving the blade support 100 tothe disengaged position, which would release the rotating disk 34 forupward and downward movement, and, second, operating the thicknessadjustment assembly.

Referring now to FIGS. 7 and 8, another embodiment of a food slicerassembly is shown in a food processor. Many of the components of thefood processor of FIGS. 7 and 8 are common with the components of thefood processor of FIGS. 1-6. Such common components have commonreference numerals. The food processor of FIGS. 7 and 8 is essentiallythe same as the food processor of FIGS. 1-6 except that the food slicerassembly (hereinafter food slicer assembly 200) includes a differentlocking mechanism to prevent the upward and downward movement rotatingdisk 34 relative to the cutting blade 18.

The slicer assembly 200, like the slicer assembly 32 described above inreference to FIGS. 1-6, includes a blade assembly 36 and a rotating disk34. In addition to the cutting blade 18, the blade assembly 36 includesa central shaft 202 extending from an upper end 204 to a lower end 206.The lower end 206 receives the drive stem 30, thereby coupling theslicer assembly 200 to the motor 14. As shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, onesection 208 of central shaft 202 has a plurality of teeth 210 extendingoutwardly from an outer surface 212 thereof.

The rotating disk 34 includes a central sleeve 214 extending downwardlyfrom a lower surface 84 thereof. A passageway 216 extends through thesleeve 214 and receives the central shaft 202 of the blade assembly 36.Similar to the locking mechanism 130 described above in reference toFIGS. 1-6, a pair of locking mechanisms 230 are positioned below thelower surface 84 of the rotating disk 34.

Each locking mechanism 230 includes a user-operated pin 232 and a lever234 coupled thereto. The user-operated pin 232 includes a shaft 236 thatis positioned in a through-hole 238 formed in a sidewall 240 of thesleeve 214. The shaft 236 extends from an end 242 positioned outside ofthe sleeve 214 to an end 244 positioned in the passageway 216. Theuser-operated pin 232 moves back and forth within the through-hole 238,as indicated by arrow 246, between a locked position and an unlockedposition.

The lever 234 is positioned within the passageway 216 and is pivotablycoupled to the sidewall 240 of the sleeve 214. The lever 234 has a leverbody 250 that extends from an upper end 252 to a lower end 254. Theupper end 252 of lever body 250 includes a tip 256 that is sized toengage with the teeth 210 formed on the central shaft 202. The lower end254 is coupled to the end 244 of the user-operated pin 232. As shown inFIGS. 7 and 8, the ends 244, 254 are in contact but are not fixed toeach other. It will be appreciated that in other embodiments the ends244, 254 may be pivotably fastened together.

The lever body 250 is pivotably coupled to the sidewall 240 at a pivotjoint 260. The pivot joint 260 includes a cylindrical pivot pin 262 thatextends through lever body 250 and the sidewall 240. The lever body 250pivots about an axis defined by the pivot joint 260 between an engagedposition and a disengaged position. In the engaged position, the tip 256of the lever 234 is engaged with a number of the teeth 210 of thecentral shaft 202. When the lever 234 is in the engaged position, therotating disk 34 is prevented from moving relative to the cutting blade18. In the disengaged position, the tip 256 of the lever is spaced apartfrom the teeth 210 of the central shaft 202 such that the lever 234 doesnot prevent the rotating disk 34 from being moved to another cuttingposition.

A spring 266 is positioned in the passageway 216 of the sleeve 214 andis coupled to the upper end 252 of the lever body 250. The spring 266extends from a spring end 268 coupled to the lever body 250 to a springend 270 coupled to the sidewall 240 of the sleeve 214. The spring 266biases the upper end 252 of the lever 234 toward the central shaft 202thereby engaging the tip 256 with the teeth 210 of the central shaft202.

When the user depresses the user-operated pin 232 of each lockingmechanism 230, the user-operated pin 232 is moved from the lockedposition to the unlocked position. The shaft 236 of the user-operatedpin 232 acts on the lower end 254 of the lever 234, thereby causing thelever 234 to pivot from the engaged position to the disengaged position.As the upper end 252 moves away from the central shaft 202, the spring266 is compressed. Thus, when the user-operated pin 232 is in theunlocked position, the lever 234 is in the disengaged position.

When the user releases the user-operated pin 232, the spring 266 urgesthe upper end 252 toward the central shaft 202 thereby re-engaging thetip 256 with the teeth 210. As the lever 234 moves back to the engagedposition, the lever body 250 urges the user-operated pin 232 back to thelocked position.

While the disclosure has been illustrated and described in detail in thedrawings and foregoing description, such an illustration and descriptionis to be considered as exemplary and not restrictive in character, itbeing understood that only illustrative embodiments have been shown anddescribed and that all changes and modifications that come within thespirit of the disclosure are desired to be protected.

For example, while food processor 10 is herein illustrated as aconventional domestic food processor, the features and aspects disclosedherein can also be implemented in other types of food processing devicessuch as automatic food slicers, dicers, ice shavers and the like.Similarly, the blade support could be removable from the rotating disk34 instead of being pivotably coupled to the rim. Additionally, therotating disk could be directly coupled to the motor, and the bladecould be movable relative to the rotating disk.

Referring to FIGS. 9-14, a food processor 310 is shown. One example of afood processor is the KitchenAid® 12-Cup Ultra Wide Mouth™ FoodProcessor, Base Model No. KFPW760OB, which is commercially availablefrom Whirlpool Corporation of Benton Harbor, Mich., U.S.A. The foodprocessor 310 has a base 312 that houses a motor 314 (shownschematically in FIG. 10) and a control unit (not shown). Under thecontrol of the control unit, the motor's output shaft 316 drives acutting blade 318 (see FIG. 10) to cut food items such as cheeses,meats, fruits, and vegetables. The base 312 also includes one or morebuttons, switches, dials, or other types of controls 320. A useroperates the controls 320 to control the operation of the motor 314 andhence the food processor 310. For instance, one of the controls 320 maybe operable to turn the motor 314 on and off, while another control 320may change the motor's speed.

As will be understood by those skilled in the art, the control unit maycomprise analog and/or digital circuitry to process electrical signalsreceived from the motor 314 (or other components of the food processor310) and provide electrical control signals to the motor or othercomponents of the food processor 310. For example, the control unit maybe embodied as a microcontroller that executes firmware routines tocontrol the operation of the food processor 310.

A removable bowl 322 is secured to the base 312. The bowl's handlefacilitates placement of the bowl 322 on the base 312. The bowl 322includes a removable lid 326 secured to its upper peripheral edge. Thelid 326 has a feed tube 328 formed thereon through which food items suchas cheeses, meats, fruits, and vegetables are inserted into the bowl 322to be processed by the food processor 310. Collectively, the lid 326 andthe bowl 322 define a processing chamber 324 where food items areprocessed by the cutting blade 318.

The bowl 322, lid 326, and feed tube 328 are generally made of atransparent or translucent plastic material, so that the contents of thefood processor 310 can be viewed by a user without removing the lid 326from the bowl 322. Moreover, one or more locking mechanisms may be usedto lock the bowl to the base 312 and the lid 326 to the bowl 322.

As shown in FIGS. 10 and 11, when the removable bowl 322 is secured tothe base 312, the output shaft 316 of the motor 314 is coupled to adrive stem 330. The drive stem 330 is in turn coupled to a food slicerassembly 332. As shown in FIGS. 10-12, the food slicer assembly 332includes a rotating disk 334 and a blade assembly 336, with the cuttingblade 318 being one component thereof. The rotating disk 334 effectivelydivides the processing chamber 324 into an upper compartment 338 locatedbetween the disk 334 and the lid 326, and a lower compartment 340located below the rotating disk 334. A vertical distance, D, between thecutting edge 342 of the cutting blade 318 and the upper surface 344 ofthe rotating disk 334 defines a cutting thickness. In other words, thethickness of the pieces of food items cut by the food processor 310 isdetermined by the distance D between the cutting edge 342 of the cuttingblade 18 and the upper surface 344 of the rotating disk 334. When thedistance D between the cutting edge 342 of the cutting blade 318 and theupper surface 344 of the rotating disk 334 is increased, thicker piecesof food items are created, with thinner pieces of food items beingcreated when the distance D between the cutting edge 342 of the cuttingblade 318 and the upper surface 344 of the rotating disk 334 isdecreased. As will be discussed in greater detail below, the rotatingdisk 334 is movable upwardly or downwardly between a plurality ofcutting positions relative to the cutting blade 318 to vary the cuttingthickness of the food processor 310, thereby creating thicker or thinnerpieces of cut food items.

As shown in FIGS. 10-13, the blade assembly 336 includes a central shaft346 that extends from a lower end 348 to an upper end 350. The lower end348 receives the drive stem 330, thereby coupling the slicer assembly332 to the output shaft 316 such that the slicer assembly 332 may bedriven by the motor 314. The blade assembly 336 also includes a hub 352positioned at the upper end 350 of the central shaft 346. As shown inFIG. 10, a tip 354 of the hub 352 is received in a guide sleeve 356extending downward from the underside of the lid 326.

An inner edge 358 of the cutting blade 318 is received in a slot 360formed between the hub 352 and the upper end 350 of the central shaft346. As shown in FIGS. 10 and 11, the cutting blade 318 is securedwithin the slot 360 such that substantial deflection of the cuttingblade 318 is inhibited when the cutting blade 318 cuts food items in theprocessing chamber 324. The cutting blade 318 is also secured to amounting arm 362 extending away from the upper end 350 of the centralshaft 346 to an end 364. A number of fasteners 366 (i.e., screws) (FIG.12) positioned at a rear edge 368 of the cutting blade 318 extend intothe mounting arm 362, thereby rigidly securing the cutting blade 318 tothe mounting arm 362. It will be appreciated that in other embodimentsthe fasteners 366 may take the form of T-stakes, pins, posts, or otherstructures capable of securing the cutting blade 18 to the mounting arm362. Additionally, the mounting arm 362 may include an overmold thatreceives the cutting blade 318.

As shown in FIGS. 10 and 11, the blade assembly 336 also includes a pairof flanges 370 extending beyond the end 364 of the mounting arm 362. Oneof the flanges 370 is an outer edge 372 of the cutting blade 318.Another flange 370 is an arcuate-shaped lip 374 extending outwardly fromthe end 364 of the mounting arm 362 that is parallel to the outer edge372 of the cutting blade 318. As will be discussed in greater detailbelow, at least one of the flanges 370 is received in one of a pluralityof slots 376 formed in the rotating disk 334 at each of the cuttingpositions.

The rotating disk 334 includes a planar body 380 and a central sleeve382 extending downwardly from a lower surface 384 thereof. It will beappreciated that one or more of the components of the rotating disk 334may be formed from plastic or a metallic material. The rotating disk 334includes a passageway 386 that extends through the sleeve 382 andreceives the central shaft 346 of the blade assembly 336. The planarbody 380 also has a contoured opening 388 extending from the uppersurface 344 to the lower surface 384. The contoured opening 388 is sizedto receive the mounting arm 362 of the blade assembly 336. When theblade assembly 336 is positioned in the rotating disk 334, a gap orthroat 392 is defined between the cutting edge 342 and the body 380, asshown in FIG. 12.

During operation, the motor 314 causes the blade assembly 336 to rotate.The blade assembly 336 acts on a sidewall 394 of the sleeve 382 suchthat the rotating disk 334 and the blade assembly 336 rotate together.Food items inserted through the feed tube 328 are urged into contactwith the upper surface 344 of the rotating disk 334 while being actedupon (i.e., cut) by the cutting blade 318. Cut food items, along withother food items small enough to fit within the throat 392, pass fromthe upper compartment 338 into the lower compartment 340 through thethroat 392.

As best seen in FIG. 13, the mounting arm 362 has a ramp 395 definedtherein, which guides food items from the throat 392 into the lowercompartment 340 of the bowl 322. The surface 396 of the ramp 395 issloped downward from an upper end 397 positioned adjacent to the cuttingedge 342 to a lower end 398. As shown in FIGS. 10 and 11, the surface396 extends radially outward from the central shaft 346 to the end 364of the mounting arm 362. The angle of inclination or slope of thesurface 396 changes along the radially length of the surface 396,increasing from approximately 15 degrees at the end 364 to approximately25 degrees near the central shaft 346. As shown in FIG. 13, the surface396 has an angle of inclination α of approximately 22 degrees. In otherembodiments, the surface 396 may be convex or concave in one or moredirections. The central shaft 346 and the end 364 of the mounting arm362 act as sidewalls for the surface 396 such that food items enteringthe throat 392 are guided down the ramp 395. In that way, the surface396 is encapsulated or captured, thereby reducing the potential for fooditems to travel outside of the processing path and thus reducingunwanted debris.

A rim 390 extends upwardly from the outer perimeter of the disk's planarbody 380. The rotating disk 334 has a diameter that is slightly lessthan the inner diameter of the bowl 322 such that the rim 390 ispositioned adjacent to, but spaced slightly apart from, the inner wallof the bowl to permit rotation of the disk 334 within the bowl 322. Therotating disk 334 also includes a blade support 400 pivotably coupled tothe rim 90.

As best seen in FIG. 14, the blade support 400 has the plurality ofslots 376 formed therein. Each of the slots 376 extends parallel to theouter edge 372 of the cutting blade 318, and each of the slots 376 issized to receive one of the flanges 370. In the illustrative embodiment,five slots 376 are formed in the blade support 400, and the slots 376are spaced apart from each other by two millimeters. It will beappreciated that in other embodiments the blade support 400 may includeadditional or fewer slots and the spacing between the slots may beadjusted.

The blade support 400 has a body 402 extending from an end 404 hinged tothe rim 390 at a pivot joint 406. The pivot joint 406 includes acylindrical pivot pin 408 that extends through, and is positioned in,the rim 390 and the end 404. It will be appreciated that in otherembodiments the pivot pin 408 may be formed as part of the blade support400. As shown in FIGS. 12 and 14, the blade support 400 pivots relativeto the rim 390 about an axis 412 defined by the pivot joint 406 betweenan engaged position and a disengaged position.

When the blade support 400 is in the engaged position (see FIGS. 10 and11), one of the flanges 370 of the blade assembly 336 is received in acorresponding slot 376. In the engaged position, the body 402 is fullypositioned in an opening 410 formed in the rim 390. When the bladesupport 400 is pivoted to the disengaged position, the body 402 extendsoutwardly from the opening 410, as shown in FIG. 14. In the disengagedposition, the slots 376 are spaced apart from the flanges 370 of theblade assembly 336.

The rotating disk 334 includes a locking device 414 that secures theblade support 400 in the engaged position. In the illustrativeembodiment, the locking device 414 includes a rectangular tab 416extending from an end 418 of the body 402. When the blade support 400 isin the engaged position, the tab 416 is received in a recess 420 formedin the rim 390. Another recess 422 formed in the end 418 of the body 402permits a user to apply sufficient force to release the blade support400. It will be appreciated that in other embodiments the locking device414 may take the form of a latch, pin, or other mechanism configured tomaintain the blade support 400 in the engaged position.

As discussed above, the rotating disk 334 is movable upwardly anddownwardly between a plurality of cutting positions relative to thecutting blade 318. As shown in FIG. 10, in one cutting position of therotating disk 334, the outer edge 372 of the cutting blade 318 isreceived in the upper slot 424 of the blade support 400. In anothercutting position, the lip 374 of the mounting arm 362 is received in theupper slot 424 of the blade support 400. In other cutting positions, thelip 374 may be positioned in any of the other slots 376 of the bladesupport 400. It will be appreciated that in other embodiments bothflanges 370 of the blade assembly 336 may be received in slots 376 ofthe rotating disk 334. Additionally, in other embodiments, the bladeassembly 336 may include only a single flange 370, such as, for example,the outer edge 372 of the cutting blade, which is received in a slot 376at each of the cutting positions. In addition to providing support tothe cutting blade 318, the engagement of one of the flanges 370 with oneof the slots 376 inhibits or prevents the upward and downward movementof the rotating disk 334 when the blade support 400 is in the engagedposition.

As shown in FIGS. 10 and 11, the food slicer assembly 332 includes aseparate locking mechanism 430 positioned below the lower surface 384 ofthe rotating disk 334 that is configured to prevent the upward anddownward movement of the rotating disk 334. In that way, the rotatingdisk 334 can be locked at one cutting position relative to the cuttingblade 318. In the illustrative embodiment, the locking mechanism 430 isalso configured to prevent the blade assembly 336 from rotating relativeto the rotating disk 334.

As shown in FIGS. 10 and 11, the locking mechanism 430 includes auser-operated pin 432. The term “user-operated pin” as used hereinrefers to a pin that is manually operated by the user without the use ofa tool. This is distinct from, and in contrast to, a set screw, hexbolt, or other fastener that is operated by the user through the use ofa wrench, screw driver, or other tool. The user-operated pin 432includes an elongated shaft 434 extending from an end 436 positionedoutside of the sleeve 382 to an end 438 positioned in an aperture 440defined in the central shaft 346. A button-head 442 sized to receive afinger of a user is formed at the end 436 of the shaft 434. The outersurface 444 of the shaft 434 includes a smooth section 446 and anothersection having a plurality of teeth 448 extending therefrom.

The shaft 434 of the user-operated pin 432 extends through avertically-extending slot 450 defined in the sidewall 394 of the sleeve382. The sidewall 394 includes a plurality of teeth 452 that extend intothe slot 450. As indicated by arrow 454 in FIG. 10, the shaft 434 ismovable between a locked position, in which the teeth 448 of the shaft434 interdigitate or engage with a number of the teeth 452 of thesidewall 394, and an unlocked position, in which the teeth 348 of theuser-operated pin are spaced apart from the teeth 352 of the sleeve. Inthe locked position, the rotating disk 334 is prevented from movingupward and downward relative to the cutting blade 318. It will beappreciated that in other embodiments the central shaft 346 may have anumber of teeth configured to engage with the teeth 448 of theuser-operated pin 432. It will also be appreciated that in otherembodiments the user-operated pin 432, central shaft 346, and sleeve 382may have any combination of slots, grooves, flanges, or other structuressuitable for locking the rotating disk 334 in position relative to thecutting blade 318.

As shown in FIGS. 10 and 11, the aperture 440 defined in the centralshaft 346 extends inwardly to a bottom 460. A cylindrical guide pin 462is positioned in an opening 464 formed at the bottom 460 of the aperture440 and extends away from the bottom 460 to an end. A spring 368 extendsover the guide pin 462 and is coupled at a spring end 470 to the end 438of the user-operated pin 432. It will be appreciated that in otherembodiments the guide pin 462 may take the form of a cross, hexagon, orother shape to provide guidance and stability to the spring 468. Thespring 468 biases the user-operated pin 432 away from the bottom 460 ofthe aperture 440 thereby engaging the teeth 448 of the user-operated pinwith the teeth 452 of the sleeve.

To change the distance D between the cutting edge 442 of the cuttingblade 418 and the upper surface 344 of the rotating disk 334, the userunlocks the blade support 400 from the rim 390 and pivots the bladesupport 400 about the axis 412 from the engaged position to thedisengaged position. The user then presses the button-head 442 todepress the user-operated pin 432. The spring 468 is compressed and theteeth 448 are moved out of contact with the teeth 452 of the sleeve 382.When the teeth 448 of the user-operated pin are spaced apart from theteeth 452 of the sleeve, the user may slide the rotating disk 334upwardly or downwardly to another cutting position.

Once the rotating disk 334 is at the desired cutting position, the userreleases the button-head 442, and the spring 468 urges the user-operatedpin 432 away from the bottom 460 of the aperture 440, thereby reengagingthe teeth 448 with the teeth 452 and locking the rotating disk 334 intothe desired cutting position. The user pivots the blade support 400 fromthe disengaged position back to the engaged position, thereby preventingsubstantial deflection of the cutting blade 318 and providing anadditional locking feature to prevent the upward/downward movement ofthe rotating disk 334 relative to the cutting blade 318.

It will be appreciated that in other embodiments the slicer assembly 332may not include the blade support 400. In such embodiments, changing thedistance D between the cutting edge 342 of the cutting blade 318 and theupper surface 344 of the rotating disk 334 would involve operating onlythe user-operated pin 432 of the locking mechanism 430. Similarly, inother embodiments including the blade support 400, the locking mechanism430 may be omitted and replaced with a different thickness adjustmentassembly operable by a user to vary the cutting thickness of the foodprocessor 310. In those embodiments, changing the distance D between thecutting edge 342 of the cutting blade 318 and the upper surface 344 ofthe rotating disk 334 would involve, first, moving the blade support 400to the disengaged position, which would release the rotating disk 334for upward and downward movement, and, second, operating the thicknessadjustment assembly.

Referring now to FIGS. 15 and 16 another embodiment of a food slicerassembly is shown in a food processor. Many of the components of thefood processor of FIGS. 15 and 16 are common with the components of thefood processor of FIGS. 9-14. Such common components have commonreference numerals. The food processor of FIGS. 15 and 16 is essentiallythe same as the food processor of FIGS. 9-14 except that the food slicerassembly (hereinafter food slicer assembly 500) includes a differentlocking mechanism to prevent the upward and downward movement rotatingdisk 334 relative to the cutting blade 318.

The slicer assembly 500, like the slicer assembly 332 described above inreference to FIGS. 9-14, includes a blade assembly 336 and a rotatingdisk 334. In addition to the cutting blade 318, the blade assembly 336includes a central shaft 502 extending from an upper end 504 to a lowerend 506. The lower end 506 receives the drive stem 330, thereby couplingthe slicer assembly 500 to the motor 314. As shown in FIGS. 15 and 16,one section 508 of central shaft 502 has a plurality of teeth 510extending outwardly from an outer surface 512 thereof.

The rotating disk 334 includes a central sleeve 514 extending downwardlyfrom a lower surface 384 thereof. A passageway 516 extends through thesleeve 514 and receives the central shaft 502 of the blade assembly 336.Similar to the locking mechanism 430 described above in reference toFIGS. 9-14, a pair of locking mechanisms 530 are positioned below thelower surface 384 of the rotating disk 334.

Each locking mechanism 530 includes a user-operated pin 532 and a lever534 coupled thereto. The user-operated pin 532 includes a shaft 536 thatis positioned in a through-hole 538 formed in a sidewall 540 of thesleeve 514. The shaft 536 extends from an end 542 positioned outside ofthe sleeve 514 to an end 544 positioned in the passageway 516. Theuser-operated pin 532 moves back and forth within the through-hole 538,as indicated by arrow 546, between a locked position and an unlockedposition.

The lever 534 is positioned within the passageway 516 and is pivotablycoupled to the sidewall 541 of the sleeve 514. The lever 534 has a leverbody 550 that extends from an upper end 552 to a lower end 554. Theupper end 552 of lever body 550 includes a tip 556 that is sized toengage with the teeth 510 formed on the central shaft 502. The lower end554 is coupled to the end 544 of the user-operated pin 532. As shown inFIGS. 15 and 16, the ends 544, 554 are in contact but are not fixed toeach other. It will be appreciated that in other embodiments the ends544, 354 may be pivotably fastened together.

The lever body 550 is pivotably coupled to the sidewall 540 at a pivotjoint 560. The pivot joint 560 includes a cylindrical pivot pin 562 thatextends through lever body 550 and the sidewall 540. The lever body 550pivots about an axis defined by the pivot joint 560 between an engagedposition and a disengaged position. In the engaged position, the tip 556of the lever 534 is engaged with a number of the teeth 510 of thecentral shaft 502. When the lever 534 is in the engaged position, therotating disk 334 is prevented from moving relative to the cutting blade318. In the disengaged position, the tip 556 of the lever is spacedapart from the teeth 510 of the central shaft 502 such that the lever534 does not prevent the rotating disk 334 from being moved to anothercutting position.

A spring 566 is positioned in the passageway 516 of the sleeve 514 andis coupled to the upper end 552 of the lever body 550. The spring 566extends from a spring end 568 coupled to the lever body 550 to a springend 570 coupled to the sidewall 540 of the sleeve 514. The spring 566biases the upper end 552 of the lever 534 toward the central shaft 502thereby engaging the tip 556 with the teeth 510 of the central shaft502.

When the user depresses the user-operated pin 532 of each lockingmechanism 530, the user-operated pin 532 is moved from the lockedposition to the unlocked position. The shaft 536 of the user-operatedpin 532 acts on the lower end 554 of the lever 534, thereby causing thelever 534 to pivot from the engaged position to the disengaged position.As the upper end 552 moves away from the central shaft 502, the spring566 is compressed. Thus, when the user-operated pin 532 is in theunlocked position, the lever 534 is in the disengaged position.

When the user releases the user-operated pin 532, the spring 566 urgesthe upper end 552 toward the central shaft 502 thereby re-engaging thetip 556 with the teeth 510. As the lever 534 moves back to the engagedposition, the lever body 550 urges the user-operated pin 532 back to thelocked position.

While the disclosure has been illustrated and described in detail in thedrawings and foregoing description, such an illustration and descriptionis to be considered as exemplary and not restrictive in character, itbeing understood that only illustrative embodiments have been shown anddescribed and that all changes and modifications that come within thespirit of the disclosure are desired to be protected.

For example, while food processor 310 is herein illustrated as aconventional domestic food processor, the features and aspects disclosedherein can also be implemented in other types of food processing devicessuch as automatic food slicers, dicers, ice shavers and the like.Similarly, the blade support could be removable from the rotating disk334 instead of being pivotably coupled to the rim. Additionally, therotating disk could be directly coupled to the motor, and the bladecould be movable relative to the rotating disk.

Referring to FIG. 17, a food processing device or food processor 610 isshown. One example of a food processor is the KitchenAid® 12-Cup UltraWide Mouth™ Food Processor, Base Model No. KFPW760OB, which iscommercially available from Whirlpool Corporation of Benton Harbor,Mich., U.S.A. The food processor 610 has a base 612 that houses a motor614 (shown schematically in FIG. 18) and a control unit (not shown).Under the control of the control unit, the motor's output shaft 616drives a cutting blade 618 (see FIG. 18) to cut food items such ascheeses, meats, fruits, and vegetables. The base 612 also includes oneor more buttons, switches, dials, or other types of controls 620. A useroperates the controls 620 to control the operation of the motor 614 andhence the food processor 610. For instance, one of the controls 620 maybe operable to turn the motor 614 on and off, while another control 620may change the motor's speed.

As will be understood by those skilled in the art, the control unit maycomprise analog and/or digital circuitry to process electrical signalsreceived from the motor 614 (or other components of the food processor610) and provide electrical control signals to the motor or othercomponents of the food processor 610. For example, the control unit maybe embodied as a microcontroller that executes firmware routines tocontrol the operation of the food processor 610.

A removable bowl 622 is secured to the base 612. The bowl's handlefacilitates placement of the bowl 622 on the base 612. The bowl 622includes a removable lid 626 secured to its upper peripheral edge. Thelid 626 has a feed tube 628 formed thereon through which food items suchas fruits and vegetables are inserted into the bowl 622 to be processedby the food processor 610. Collectively, the lid 626 and the bowl 622define a processing chamber 624 where food items are processed by thecutting blade 618.

The bowl 622, lid 626, and feed tube 628 are generally made of atransparent or translucent plastic material, so that the contents of thefood processor 610 can be viewed by a user without removing the lid 626from the bowl 622. Moreover, one or more locking mechanisms may be usedto lock the bowl to the base 612 and the lid 626 to the bowl 622.

As shown in FIGS. 18 and 19, when the removable bowl 622 is secured tothe base 612, the output shaft 616 of the motor 614 is coupled to adrive stem 630. The drive stem 630 is in turn coupled to a food slicerassembly 632. As shown in FIGS. 18-20, the food slicer assembly 632includes a rotating disk 634, a thickness adjustment assembly 636, and ablade assembly 638, with the cutting blade 618 being one componentthereof. The rotating disk 634 effectively divides the processingchamber 624 into an upper compartment 640 located between the disk 634and the lid 626, and a lower compartment 642 located below the rotatingdisk 634. A vertical distance, D, between the cutting edge 644 of thecutting blade 618 and the upper surface 646 of the rotating disk 634defines a cutting thickness. In other words, the thickness of the piecesof food items cut by the food processor 610 is determined by thedistance D between the cutting edge 644 of the cutting blade 618 and theupper surface 646 of the rotating disk 634. When the distance D betweenthe cutting edge 644 of the cutting blade 618 and the upper surface 646of the rotating disk 634 is increased, thicker pieces of food items arecreated, with thinner pieces of food items being created when thedistance D between the cutting edge 644 of the cutting blade 618 and theupper surface 646 of the rotating disk 634 is decreased.

The rotating disk 634 includes a planar body 652 and a rim 654 thatextends upwardly from the outer perimeter of the planar body 652. Therotating disk 634 has a diameter that is slightly less than the innerdiameter of the bowl 622 such that the rim 654 is positioned adjacentto, but spaced slightly apart from, the inner wall of the bowl to permitrotation of the disk 634 within the bowl 622. In the exemplaryembodiment described herein, the rotating disk 634 is embodied as amonolithic structure (e.g., a single molded or cast part). However, itshould be appreciated that the components of the rotating disk 634(e.g., body 652 and rim 654) may be embodied as separate componentssecured to one another by an adhesive or other suitable fastener.

The thickness adjustment assembly 636 is operable by a user to vary thecutting thickness of the food processor 610 thereby creating thicker orthinner pieces of cut food items. The adjustment assembly 636 includes ahub 660 and a user-operated control device 662. The hub 660 includes abase 664 and a hollow sleeve 666 extending upwardly therefrom. A numberof fasteners 668 (i.e., screws) extend through the planar body 652 intothe base 664, thereby rigidly securing the rotating disk 634 to the hub660. It will be appreciated that in other embodiments the hub 660 andthe rotating disk 634 may be integrally formed as a monolithicstructure. As shown in FIGS. 18 and 19, the sleeve 666 extends throughan opening 669 formed in the planar body 652. External threads 670 aredefined on a portion of an outer surface 672 of the sleeve 666.

The user-operated control device 662 is positioned above the uppersurface 646 of the rotating disk 634. As shown in FIGS. 18-20, theuser-operated control device 662 includes a control knob 674. Thecontrol knob 674 has a body 676 that extends from a lower end 678 to anupper end 680. The body 676 includes a knurled grip 682 formed in theupper end 680 and an annular flange 684 extending outwardly from thelower end 678. It should be appreciated that other user-activatedcontrol devices, such as levers, dials, buttons, or the like, may besubstituted for the control knob.

As shown in FIGS. 18 and 19, the body 676 of the control knob 674 has anaperture 686 formed in the lower end 678 that receives the sleeve 666 ofthe hub 660. The inner surface 688 of the aperture 686 has internalthreads 690 defined therein that correspond to the external threads 670of the hub 660. The internal threads 690 of the control knob 674threadingly engage the external threads 670 of the hub 660 to move thehub 660 (and hence the rotating disk 634) upwardly and downwardlyrelative to the cutting blade 618. For example, clockwise rotation ofthe control knob 674 causes upward movement of the hub 660 (and hencethe rotating disk 634), while counter-clockwise rotation of the controlknob 674 causes downward movement of the hub 660 (and hence the rotatingdisk 634).

As shown in FIGS. 18 and 19, a central shaft 698 of the blade assembly638 is received in the hollow sleeve 666 of the adjustment assembly 636and is secured at an upper end 702 to the control knob 674. The centralshaft 698 extends from the upper end 702 to a lower end 704, which ishas an opening 706 that receives the drive stem 630. In that way, theslicer assembly 632 is coupled to the output shaft 616 such that theslicer assembly 632 may be driven by the motor 614. The blade assembly638 also includes a mounting arm 710 extending from an inner end 712,which is secured to the lower end 704 of the central shaft 698, to anouter end 714, which is positioned adjacent to the rim 654 of therotating disk 634. In the illustrative embodiment, the central shaft 698and mounting arm 710 are formed as a single monolithic component from aplastic or metallic material. It should be appreciated that in otherembodiments the shaft 698 and arm 710 may be formed as separatecomponents that are joined during final assembly by an adhesive or othersuitable fastener.

The cutting blade 618 is secured to an upper surface 716 of the mountingarm 710. A number of fasteners 720 (i.e., screws) positioned at a rearedge 722 of the cutting blade 618 extend into the mounting arm 710,thereby rigidly securing the cutting blade 618 to the mounting arm 710.It will be appreciated that in other embodiments the fasteners 720 maytake the form of T-stakes, pins, posts, or other structures capable ofsecuring the cutting blade 618 to the mounting arm 710. Additionally,the mounting arm 710 may include an overmold that receives the cuttingblade 618.

As shown in FIG. 20, the opening 669 formed in the planar body 652extends radially outward and receives the mounting arm 710 and thecutting blade 618. When the food slicer assembly 632 is assembled, a gapor throat 724 is defined between the cutting edge 644 and the body 652,as best seen in FIGS. 20 and 21. The food slicer assembly 632 alsoincludes a counterweight 726 coupled to the planar body 652 adjacent tothe outer perimeter of the rotating disk 634. As shown in FIGS. 18 and19, the hub 660 is positioned between the counterweight 726 and thecutting blade 618. The counterweight 726 is sized to offset the weightof the mounting arm 710 and the cutting blade 618. In that way, thecounterweight 726 balances the slicer assembly 632 as it is rotated. Inother embodiments, the separate counterweight 726 may be omitted andadditional material may be added to the rim 654 and the planar body 652such that the counterweight is incorporated into the rotating disk 634.

During operation, the user may change the cutting position of therotating disk 634 using the control knob 674. When the control knob 674is rotated, the hub 660 translates upwardly and downwardly along thecentral shaft 698 to change the thickness of the food items beingprocessed by the food processor 610. In particular, counter-clockwiserotation of the control knob 674 causes downward movement of the hub 660(and hence rotating disk 634), which increases the distance D betweenthe cutting edge 644 of the cutting blade 618 and the upper surface 646of the rotating disk 634 and thereby produces thicker pieces of fooditems. Oppositely, when the control knob 674 is rotated clockwise, thehub 660 is moved upwardly along the central shaft 698 and the distance Dbetween the cutting edge 644 of the cutting blade 618 and the uppersurface 646 of the rotating disk 634 is decreased, thereby producingthinner pieces of food items.

When the food processor 610 is activated, the motor 614 causes the bladeassembly 638 to rotate. The blade assembly 638 acts on the hub 660secured to the rotating disk 634 such that the rotating disk 634 and theblade assembly 638 rotate together. Food items inserted through the feedtube 628 are urged into contact with the upper surface 646 of therotating disk 634 while being acted upon (i.e., cut) by the cuttingblade 618. Cut food items, along with other food items small enough tofit within the throat 724, pass from the upper compartment 640 throughthe throat 724.

A ramp 730 defined in the mounting arm 710 guides food items from theupper compartment 640 to the lower compartment 642. As shown in FIG. 21,the ramp 730 is positioned adjacent to and below the cutting blade 618and includes an inclined surface 732 extending downwardly from theunderside of cutting blade 618. The inclined surface 732 extends fromthe inner end 712 of the mounting arm 710 radially outward to the outerend 714 of the mounting arm 710. As shown in FIGS. 18 and 19, the innerend 712 defines an inner sidewall 734 for the ramp 730, while the outerend 714 of the mounting arm 710 defines an outer sidewall 736. In thatway, the inclined surface 732 is encapsulated or captured between thesidewalls 734, 736, thereby reducing the potential for food items totravel outside of the processing path and thus reducing unwanted debris.

As shown in FIGS. 21 and 22, the slope or angle of the inclined surface732 relative to the cutting blade 618 changes as the inclined surface732 extends radially outward. As shown in FIG. 21, which is across-section of the slicer assembly 632 taken at the outer end 714 ofthe mounting arm 710, the inclined surface 732 has an angle ofinclination α at the outer end 714. As shown in FIG. 22, which is across-section of the slicer assembly 632 taken at the inner end 712 ofthe mounting arm 710, the inclined surface 732 has an angle ofinclination ß that is greater than the angle α. In the illustrativeembodiment, the angle α is approximately 15 degrees, and the angle ß isapproximately 25 degrees. It will be appreciated that in otherembodiments the angles α, ß may be greater than or less than those ofthe illustrative embodiment. Additionally, in some embodiments, theangles α, ß may be equal. In still other embodiments, the inclinedsurface 732 may be convex or concave in one or more directions.

Referring to FIG. 23, a food processing device or food processor 810 isshown. The food processor 810 has a base 812 that houses a motor 814 anda control unit. Under the control of the control unit, the motor 814drives a cutting assembly 816 to cut food items such as cheeses, meats,fruits, and vegetables. The base 812 also includes one or more buttons,switches, dials, or other types of controls 818. A user operates thecontrols 818 to control the operation of the motor 814 and hence thefood processor 810. For example, one of the controls 818 may be operableto turn the motor 814 on and off while another control 818 may changethe motor's speed.

As will be understood by those skilled in the art, the control unit maycomprise analog and/or digital circuitry to process electrical signalsreceived from the motor 814 (or other components of the food processor810) and provide electrical control signals to the motor or othercomponents of the food processor 810. For example, the control unit maybe embodied as a microcontroller that executes firmware routines tocontrol the operation of the food processor 810.

A removable receptacle or bowl 820 is secured to the base 812. Thebowl's handle facilitates placement of the bowl 820 on the base 812. Thebowl 820 includes a removable lid 822 secured to its upper peripheraledge. The lid 822 has a feed tube 824 formed thereon through which fooditems such as fruits and vegetables are inserted into the bowl 820 to beprocessed by the food processor 810. Collectively, the lid 822 and thebowl 820 define a processing chamber 826 where food items are processedby the cutting assembly 816.

The bowl 820, lid 822, and feed tube 824 are generally made of atransparent or translucent plastic material so that the contents of thefood processor 810 can be viewed by a user without removing the lid 822from the bowl 820. Moreover, one or more locking mechanisms may be usedto lock the bowl to the base 812 and the lid 822 to the bowl 820.

As shown in FIG. 23, the cutting assembly 816 includes a cutting blade830 and a rotating disk 832, which effectively divides the processingchamber 826 into an upper compartment 834 located between the disk 832and the lid 822, and a lower compartment 836 located underneath the disk832. A vertical distance, D, between the cutting edge 838 of the cuttingblade 830 and the upper surface 840 of the rotating disk 832 defines acutting thickness of food items processed by the cutting assembly 816.In other words, the thickness of the pieces of food items cut by thefood processor 810 is determined by the distance D between the cuttingedge 838 of the cutting blade 830 and the upper surface 840 of therotating disk 832. As the distance D between the cutting edge 838 of thecutting blade 830 and the upper surface 840 of the rotating disk 832increases, thicker pieces of food items are created; while thinnerpieces of food items are created when the distance D between the cuttingedge 838 of the cutting blade 830 and the upper surface 840 of therotating disk 832 decreases. The cutting assembly 816 has a number ofcutting positions in which the distance D between the cutting edge 838of the cutting blade 830 and the upper surface 840 of the rotating disk832 is preset.

A thickness adjustment assembly 842 is operable by a user to vary thecutting thickness of the food processor 810 while the cutting assembly816 is driven by the motor 814, thereby creating thicker or thinnerpieces of cut food items during a cutting operation. The adjustmentassembly 842 includes a user-operated control device 844 that is locatedoutside of the processing chamber 826 defined by the bowl 820 and thelid 822. What is meant herein by the term “outside” as it relates to thelocation of the user-operated control device relative to the bowl or theprocessing chamber is that the structure of the control device contactedby the user to operate the device is positioned external to the bowl andlid so that it may be operated by the user while the lid is secured tothe bowl, thereby allowing the cutting thickness of the food processorto be adjusted while the cutting assembly 816 is driven by the motor814.

For example, in the illustrative embodiment described herein, theexternal control device 844 is embodied as a control lever 846 thatextends outwardly from the base 812 and is movable relative to the base812 to change the cutting thickness of the cutting assembly 816 withoutremoving the lid 822 from the bowl 820. In such a configuration, theuser moves the control lever 846 one direction or the other to change(i.e., increase or decrease) the distance D between the cutting edge 838of the cutting blade 830 and the upper surface 840 of the rotating disk832. It should be appreciated that other user-operated control devices,such as knobs, dials, buttons, servo-motors, or the like, may besubstituted for the control lever 846.

Referring now to FIGS. 24-26, the motor 14 includes an output shaft 850extending upwardly from the base 812. The output shaft 850 is coupled toa drive stem 852, which is in turn coupled to a central shaft 854 of ablade assembly 856 of the cutting assembly 816. The central shaft 854has a socket 858 formed in its lower end. A pair of tabs 860 extendingfrom the upper end of the drive stem 852 is received in the socket 858,thereby coupling the drive stem 852 (and hence the output shaft 850 ofthe motor 814) to the central shaft 854 of the blade assembly 856. Assuch, rotation of the output shaft 850 causes rotation of the bladeassembly 856. It should be appreciated that the position of the socketand the tabs may be reversed with the tabs being formed in the centralshaft 854 and the socket being formed on the drive stem 852.

The blade assembly 856 also includes a mounting arm 862 that extendsoutwardly from the central shaft 854. The cutting blade 830 is securedto the upper surface of the mounting arm 862. In the exemplaryembodiment, the central shaft 854 and the mounting arm 862 are formedfrom a metallic material as a single monolithic component. It should beappreciated that in other embodiments the shaft 854 and the arm 862 maybe formed as separate components, which are then joined together duringfinal assembly by an adhesive or other suitable fastener.

A number of fasteners 864 (i.e., screws) positioned at a rear edge 866of the cutting blade 830 extend into the mounting arm 862, therebyrigidly securing the cutting blade 830 to the mounting arm 862. It willbe appreciated that in other embodiments the fasteners 864 may take theform of T-stakes, pins, posts, or other structures capable of securingthe cutting blade 830 to the arm 862. As best seen in FIG. 24, the arm862 includes an overmold 868 that receives the cutting blade 830.

The rotating disk 832 includes a central hub 870, a planar body 872extending radially outward the central hub 870, and a rim 874 extendingupwardly from the outer perimeter of the planar body 872. The rotatingdisk 832 has a diameter that is slightly less than the inner diameter ofthe bowl 820 such that the rim 874 is positioned adjacent to, but isslightly spaced apart from, the inner wall of the bowl to permitrotation of the disk 832 within the bowl 820. In the exemplaryembodiment described herein, the planar body 872 and the rim 874 areembodied as a monolithic structure (e.g., a single molded or cast part).However, it should be appreciated that all of the components of therotating disk 832 (e.g., hub 870, body 872, and rim 874) may beintegrated into a single monolithic structure or may be formed asseparate components secured to one another by an adhesive or othersuitable fastener.

The hub 870 of the rotating disk 832 has a sidewall 876 that defines apassageway 878 extending through the hub 870. The central shaft 854 ofthe blade assembly 856 is positioned in the passageway 878. The hub 870also has a pocket 880 defined in the sidewall 876 that opens into thepassageway 878. The mounting arm 862 of the blade assembly 856 isreceived in the pocket 880, thereby torsionally securing the bladeassembly 856 to the rotating disk 832. As such, rotation of the bladeassembly 856 by the output shaft 850 causes rotation of the rotatingdisk 832.

The mounting arm 862 extends outwardly from the pocket 880 and ispositioned in an oblong opening 882 formed in the rotating disk 832. Therotating disk 832 is permitted to vertically slide relative to themounting arm 862 and the blade 830. In use, when the cutting thicknessis adjusted, the rotating disk 832 slides upwardly or downwardlyrelative to the blade assembly 856 (e.g., cutting blade 830). Becausethe blade assembly 856 is fixed to the drive stem 852, the cutting blade830 is maintained in its vertical position such that, as the rotatingdisk 832 moves upwardly or downwardly, the distance D defined betweenthe cutting edge 838 of the cutting blade 830 and the upper surface 840of the rotating disk 832 changes, thereby changing the cuttingthickness. As seen in FIG. 25, the distance D defined between thecutting edge 838 of the cutting blade 830 and the upper surface 840 ofthe rotating disk 832 is relatively small, resulting in thinner slices.Oppositely, as shown in FIG. 26, the distance D defined between thecutting edge 838 of the cutting blade 830 and the upper surface 840 ofthe rotating disk 832 is larger because the rotating disk 832 has moveddownward relative to the cutting blade 830, which results in thickerslices.

As described above, the food processor 810 includes the thicknessadjustment assembly 842, which is operable to move the rotating disk 832relative to the cutting blade 830. The adjustment assembly 842 includesa two-piece adaptor 884 coupled to the hub 870 of the rotating disk 832,a lift device 886 supporting the adaptor 884 and the rotating disk 832,and a gear assembly 888 positioned in the base 812. The adaptor 884includes an upper shaft 890 secured to the hub 870 of the rotating disk832 and a lower shaft 892 rotatably coupled to the lift device 886. Theupper shaft 890 has a cylindrical body 894 that extends from an upperend 896 to a lower end 898. The upper end 896 of the upper shaft 890 hasa pair of tabs 900 extending outwardly therefrom. Each tab 900 ispositioned in a corresponding slot 902 defined in the hub 870, therebysecuring the shaft 890 to the rotating disk 832 such that rotation ofthe rotating disk 832 causes rotation of the shaft 890. At the lower end898 of the shaft 890, a plurality of teeth 910 are formed in the body894 to secure the upper shaft 890 to the lower shaft 892, as describedin greater detail below.

The shaft 890 of the adaptor 884 also includes an opening 904 that isdefined in the upper end 896 of the cylindrical body 894. The body 894includes an inner wall 906 extending downwardly from the opening 904 anddefining a passageway 908 through the body 894. When assembled, theshaft 890 is positioned over the drive stem 852 and the lower end of thecentral shaft 854 of the blade assembly 856 such that the stem 852 andshaft 854 are received in the passageway 908.

The lower shaft 892 of the adaptor 884 is torsionally secured to thelower end 898 of the shaft 890 such that the rotation of the shaft 890causes rotation of the shaft 892. The lower shaft 892, like the uppershaft 890, has a cylindrical body 912 extending from an upper end 914 toa lower end 916. The body 912 includes a plurality of teeth 918, whichare formed at the upper end 914. When the adaptor 84 is assembled, theteeth 918 of the lower shaft 892 are interdigitated with the teeth 910of the upper shaft 890, thereby securing the shaft 890, 892 together. Itwill be appreciated that in other embodiments a combination of pins andslots as well as other fastening means may be used to torsionally securethe shafts 890 to the shaft 892.

As shown in FIGS. 25-26, the shaft 890 includes a biasing mechanism 920positioned in the passageway 908, and the biasing mechanism 920 isconfigured to bias the upper shaft 890 into engagement with the lowershaft 892. The biasing mechanism 920 includes a sleeve 922 positioned inthe middle of the passageway 908. The sleeve 922 has the drive stem 852of the motor 814 extending therethrough.

The sleeve 922 includes an upper rim 924 that contacts the lower surface926 of the central shaft 854 of the blade assembly 856 when the uppershaft 890 is secured to the rotating disk 832. A flange 928 extendsoutwardly from the upper rim 924. Similarly, the inner wall 906 of theupper shaft 890 includes an inner flange 930 extending inwardly into thepassageway 908. A biasing element, such as a spring 932, is positionedbetween the flanges 928, 930. The spring 932 urges the shaft 890downward to maintain engagement between the teeth 910, 918 such that theshafts 890, 892 remain coupled together.

The lift device 886 is operable to move the adaptor 884 (and hencerotating disk 832) upwardly and downwardly relative to the base. Thelift device 886 includes a screw-type drive assembly having aninternally-threaded upper sleeve 940 and an externally-threaded lowersleeve 942. The internal threads 944 of the upper sleeve 940 threadinglyengage the external threads 946 of the lower sleeve 942 to move theupper sleeve 940 upwardly and downwardly relative to the base 812. Forexample, counter-clockwise rotation of the upper sleeve 940 may causedownward movement of the upper sleeve 940, while clockwise rotation ofthe upper sleeve 940 may cause upward movement of the upper sleeve 940.

The lower end 916 of the shaft 892 of the adaptor 884 is rotatablycoupled to the upper sleeve 940 of the lift device 886 via a bearing948. In that way, the shaft 892 (and hence cutting assembly 816) ispermitted to rotate relative to the upper sleeve 940. At the same time,the bearing 948 fixes the axial position of the shaft 892 relative tothe upper sleeve 940 such that upward and downward movement of the uppersleeve 940 causes upward and downward movement of the shaft 892.

In use, the thickness of food items being processed by the foodprocessor 810 changes as the upper sleeve 940 translates upwardly anddownwardly because the adaptor 884 moves with the upper sleeve 940. Inparticular, as the upper sleeve 940 moves downwardly along the lowersleeve 942, the lower shaft 892 of the adaptor 884 moves downwardly withthe upper sleeve 940. The spring 832 within the upper shaft 890 urgesthe upper shaft 890 to move downwardly with the lower shaft 892. Becausethe upper shaft 890 is secured to the hub 870 of the rotating disk 832,that vertical movement of the upper shaft 890 of the adaptor 884 causesvertical movement of the rotating disk 832 relative to the cutting blade830. As such, when the upper sleeve 940 is moved downwardly, therotating disk 832 is moved downwardly, and the distance D between thecutting edge 838 of the cutting blade 830 and the upper surface 840 ofthe rotating disk 832 is increased, thereby producing thicker pieces offood items. Oppositely, as the upper sleeve 940 translates upwardlyalong the lower sleeve 942, the rotating disk 832 moves upwardly, andthe distance D between the cutting edge 838 of the cutting blade 830 andthe upper surface 840 of the rotating disk 832 decreases, therebyproducing thinner pieces of food items.

While the lift device 886 is operable to change the vertical position ofthe rotating disk 832, the lift device 886 is isolated from therotational force of the motor 814 such that the lift device 886 is notdriven along with the cutting assembly 816. As described above, theadaptor 884, which rotates with the cutting assembly 816, is rotatablycoupled to the upper sleeve 940 via the bearing 948. Additionally, inthe illustrative embodiment, the upper sleeve 940 has a hollowpassageway 950 extending therethrough. The output shaft 850 of the motor814 is positioned in the hollow passageway 950, and the hollowpassageway 950 is sized such that the output shaft 850 is spaced apartfrom the upper sleeve 940. The output shaft 850 is rotatably coupled tothe lower sleeve 942 via a pair of bearings 952 such that the outputshaft 850 is permitted to rotate relative to the lower sleeve 942. Assuch, rotational force from the output shaft 850 is not transmitted tothe sleeves 940, 942 of the lift device 886.

The lower sleeve 942 is secured to the base 812 such that the sleeve 942does not rotate. The base 812 has a compartment 960 that is defined byan outer wall 962. A platform 964 is positioned within the compartment960, and the lower sleeve 942 is secured to the platform 964. As bestseen in FIG. 24, the gear assembly 888 is also positioned within thecompartment 960. The gear assembly 888 includes a drive gear 970 and aguide gear 972 that are pivotally coupled to the platform 964. Each ofthe gears 970, 972 is an external gear having a plurality of teeth 974,976 defined on an outer surface 978, 980 thereof. The teeth 974, 976 areinterdigitated such that rotation of the drive gear 970 causes rotationof the guide gear 972.

As best seen in FIG. 27, the guide gear 972 has a body 982 configured tobe rotatably coupled to the platform 964. The body 982 includes anopening 984 defined in an upper surface 986 and an inner wall 988extending downwardly from the opening 984. The inner wall 988 defines apassageway 990 extending through the body 982 of the gear 972. Aplurality of splines 992 extend inwardly from the inner wall 988 intothe passageway 990.

The upper sleeve 940 of the lift device 886 is movably coupled to theguide gear 972. The upper sleeve 940 includes an outer surface 994having a plurality of grooves 996 defined therein. Each groove 996 issized to receive one of the splines 992 of the gear 972, therebycoupling the sleeve 940 to the guide gear 972 and permitting the sleeve940 to translate upwardly and downwardly relative to the gear 972. Assuch, rotation of the guide gear 972 causes rotation of the upper sleeve940 relative to the lower sleeve 942. As described above, rotation ofthe upper sleeve 940 causes movement of the upper sleeve 940 upwardly ordownwardly and changes the thickness of food items being processed bythe food processor 810.

As best seen in FIG. 27, the drive gear 970 includes a body 1000 that ispositioned in the compartment 960 of the base 812. The body 1000 ispivotally coupled to a platform 964 of the base 812 via a pivot pin1002. The drive gear 970 includes a shaft 1004 that extends downwardlyfrom the body 1000. The shaft 1004 extends through a curved slot 1006defined in the platform 964.

The external control device 844 is configured to operate the lift device886 and the gear assembly 888 to move the rotating disk 832 upwardly anddownwardly and thereby change the thickness of food items processed bythe food processor 810. The control lever 846 of the external controldevice 844 is coupled to the drive gear 970. The lever 846 includes anarm 1010 having a guide slot 1014 defined therein. The shaft 1004 of thegear 970 is positioned in the guide slot 1014, thereby coupling thelever 846 to the gear 970.

The arm 1010 extends outwardly through a horizontal track 1012 definedin the outer wall 962 of the base 812. A grip 1016 of the user-operateddevice 844 is secured at the end of the arm 1010 positioned outside thebase 812. When the food processor is assembled, the grip 1016 ispositioned below the removable bowl 820. The arm 1010, like the drivegear 970, is pivotally coupled to the platform 964 such that the grip1016 is movable between a plurality of adjustment positions relative tothe base 812.

In use, movement of the grip 1016 of the control lever 846 relative tothe base 812 causes the arm 1010 to pivot and advance the shaft 1004 ofthe gear 970 along the slot 1006. As the shaft 1004 advances along theslot 1006, the drive gear 970 and guide gear 972 rotate. As describedabove, rotation of the guide gear 972 causes movement of the uppersleeve 940 upwardly or downwardly and changes the thickness of fooditems being processed by the food processor 810. Each adjustmentposition of the grip 1016 corresponds to one of the preset cuttingpositions of the cutting assembly 816.

Referring now to FIGS. 27 and 28, the food processor 810 includes alocking mechanism 1020 configured to inhibit movement of the controllever 846 relative to the base 812 and thereby maintain the cuttingassembly 816 at its current cutting position. The locking mechanism 1020includes a pin 1022 positioned in an aperture 1024 defined in theplatform 964. The convex upper end 1026 of the pin 1022 is configured tobe received in a plurality of concave notches 1028 defined in the bottomsurface of the body 1000 of the drive gear 970. Each notch 1028corresponds to an adjustment position of the control lever 846 and hencea cutting position of the cutting assembly 816.

As shown in FIG. 28, a biasing element, such as spring 1030, ispositioned between the pin 1022 and the bottom surface 1032 of theaperture 1024. The spring 1030 urges the pin 1022 into engagement withthe notch 1028 corresponding to the present adjustment position of thecontrol lever 846. However, when the user desires to change thethickness of the food items being processed by the food processor 810,the user may grab the grip 1016 and advance the control lever 846 alongthe track 1012. Doing so moves the convex pin 1022 along the concavesurface of the notch 1028 and overcomes the bias of the spring 1030,thereby moving the pin 1022 downward and permitting the pin 1022 toslide along the bottom surface of the gear 970 to the next notch 1028corresponding to the next adjustment position.

In use, a user operates the controls 818 to energize the motor 814 torotate the output shaft 850 and the drive stem 852. Because the cuttingassembly 816 is secured to the drive stem 852 via the central shaft 854,rotation of the output shaft 850 causes rotation of the cutting assembly816. While the motor 814 is energized, the user may advance food itemsinto the processing chamber 826 through the feed tube 824 to be cut bythe rotating cutting assembly 816.

If the user desires to change the cutting thickness during the cuttingoperation, the user may grab the grip 1016 and advance the control lever846 along the track 1012 to another adjustment position. Movement of thecontrol lever 846 causes the control lever 846 to pivot and rotate thedrive gear 970 and guide gear 972. As described above, rotation of theguide gear 972 causes rotation of the upper sleeve 940 relative to thelower sleeve 942 and moves the upper sleeve 940 upwardly or downwardlyrelative to the base 812. Because the adaptor 884 is secured to both theupper sleeve 940 and the rotating disk 832, movement of the upper sleeve940 causes movement of the disk 832 relative to the cutting blade 830,thereby changing the distance D between the cutting edge 838 of thecutting blade 30 and the upper surface 840 of the rotating disk 832 and,consequently, the thickness of food items being processed by the foodprocessor 810.

Referring now to FIG. 29, another embodiment of a food processor(hereinafter referenced as a food processor 1110) is shown. Somefeatures of the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 29 are substantiallysimilar to those discussed above in reference to the embodiment of FIGS.23-28. Such features are designated in FIG. 29 with the same referencenumbers as those used in FIGS. 23-28.

The food processor 1110 has a base 812 that houses a motor 814 and acontrol unit. Under the control of the control unit, the motor 814drives a cutting assembly 816 to cut food items such as cheeses, meats,fruits, and vegetables. The base 812 also includes one or more buttons,switches, dials, or other types of controls 818. A user operates thecontrols 818 to control the operation of the motor 814 and hence thefood processor 1110. For example, one of the controls 818 may beoperable to turn the motor 814 on and off while another control 818 maychange the motor's speed.

As will be understood by those skilled in the art, the control unit maycomprise analog and/or digital circuitry to process electrical signalsreceived from the motor 814 (or other components of the food processor1110) and provide electrical control signals to the motor or othercomponents of the food processor 1110. For example, the control unit maybe embodied as a microcontroller that executes firmware routines tocontrol the operation of the food processor 1110.

The food processor 1110 also includes a removable receptacle or bowl 820secured to the base 812, and the bowl 820 has a removable lid 822secured to its upper peripheral edge. Collectively, the lid 822 and thebowl 820 define a processing chamber 826 where food items are processedby the cutting assembly 816.

As shown in FIG. 29, the cutting assembly 816 includes a cutting blade830 and a rotating disk 832. A vertical distance, D, between the cuttingedge 838 of the cutting blade 830 and the upper surface 840 of therotating disk 832 defines a cutting thickness of food items processed bythe cutting assembly 816. In other words, the thickness of the pieces offood items cut by the food processor 810 is determined by the distance Dbetween the cutting edge 838 of the cutting blade 830 and the uppersurface 840 of the rotating disk 832.

The food processor 1110 also includes a thickness adjustment assembly1142, which is operable by a user to vary the cutting thickness of thefood processor 810 while the cutting assembly 816 is driven by the motor814, thereby creating thicker or thinner pieces of cut food items duringa cutting operation. Like the thickness adjustment assembly 842 of theembodiment of FIGS. 23-28, the thickness adjustment assembly 1142includes a two-piece adaptor 884 coupled to the rotating disk 832, alift device 886 supporting the adaptor 884 and the rotating disk 832,and a gear assembly 888 positioned in the base 812. The thicknessadjustment assembly 1142 also includes a motor 1144 (shown indiagrammatic form) that is coupled to the gear assembly 888 and operableto rotate the drive gear 970 and guide gear 972 of the gear assembly 888and thereby raise and lower the rotating disk 832 relative to thecutting blade 830. A user operates a pair of buttons 1150 of thecontrols 818 to control the operation of the motor 1144 and hence thethickness adjustment assembly 842. In that way, the motor 1144 andbuttons 1150 replace the control lever 846 as the mechanism by which thegear assembly 888 and lift device 886 are operated to change thethickness of the processed food items.

In other embodiments, the adjustment assembly may include otherelectromechanical components such that the user may adjust the cuttingthickness at the touch of a button while the cutting assembly 816 isdriven by the motor 814. The electromechanical components may include,for example, a small motor that would directly operate a screw-typedrive assembly without a gear assembly while the other motor drives thecutting assembly. The electromechanical components may also includecontrol circuitry to process electrical signals received from the secondmotor and provide electrical control signals to the second motor. Forexample, the control circuitry may be embodied as a microcontroller thatexecutes firmware routines to control the operation the second motor toadjust the cutting thickness of the cutting assembly. Additionalcontrols or buttons to control the operation of the second motor may beadded to the food processor.

While the disclosure has been illustrated and described in detail in thedrawings and foregoing description, such an illustration and descriptionis to be considered as exemplary and not restrictive in character, itbeing understood that only illustrative embodiments have been shown anddescribed and that all changes and modifications that come within thespirit of the disclosure are desired to be protected.

For example, while food processor 810 is herein illustrated as aconventional domestic food processor, the features and aspects disclosedherein can also be implemented in other types of food processing devicessuch as automatic food choppers, slicers, dicers, ice shavers and thelike. Additionally, while the cutting assembly 816 was illustrativelyembodied as an adjustable slicing disk attachment, the concept of anadjustable cutting assembly 816 can also be implemented with othercutting attachments, such as, for example, a shredding disk,grate/shaving disk, julienne disk, and the like.

It will also be appreciated that in other embodiments the threadedsleeves 940, 942 of the lift device 886 may be replaced with a series oframp structures or cams that slide relative to one another to change theposition of the rotating disk 832 relative to the cutting blade 830.Additionally, it will also be appreciated that in other embodiments therotating disk may be vertically fixed and the cutting blade may beconfigured to move relative to the rotating disk to change the cuttingthickness.

Other embodiments of a food processor are shown in greater detail inFIGS. 30-42. Some features of the embodiments illustrated in FIGS. 30-42are substantially similar to those discussed above in reference to theembodiments of FIGS. 23-29. Such features are designated in FIGS. 30-42with the same reference numbers as those used in FIGS. 23-29.

Referring now to FIGS. 30 and 31, another embodiment of a food processor(hereinafter food processor 1210) is shown. The food processor 1210includes another embodiment of a cutting assembly (hereinafter cuttingassembly 1216) and another embodiment of a removable lid (hereinafterlid 1228), which engages the cutting assembly to seat the cuttingassembly on the drive stem, as described in greater detail below.

As shown in FIG. 30, the food processor 1210 has a base 812 that housesa motor 814 and a control unit (not shown). Under the control of thecontrol unit, the motor 814 drives the cutting assembly 1216 to cut fooditems such as cheeses, meats, fruits, and vegetables. The food processor1210 also includes a removable receptacle or bowl 820 that is secured tothe base 812. The bowl 820 has an upper rim 1222 and an inner wall 1224that extends downwardly from the upper rim 1222 to define part of aprocessing chamber 826 where food items may be processed by the cuttingassembly 1216.

The removable lid 1228 is configured to be secured to the rim 1222 ofthe bowl 820. In that way, the removable lid 1228 and the bowl 820cooperate to define the processing chamber 826. The lid 1228 also has afeed tube 824 formed thereon through which food items such as fruits andvegetables may be inserted into the bowl 820 to be processed by the foodprocessor 810. The lid 1228 of the food processor 1210 includes a shell1230, and the feed tube 824 extends upwardly from the outer surface 1234of the shell 1230. The shell 1230 has a sleeve 1236 that extendsdownwardly from an inner surface 1238 thereof. The sleeve 1236 has anopening 1240 defined in a lower end 1242, and an inner wall 1244 thatextends from the opening 1240 to define an aperture 1246 in the sleeve1236.

As described above, the cutting assembly 1216 of the food processor 1210is driven by the motor 814 to cut food items. The motor 814 includes anoutput shaft 850 extending upwardly from the base 812. The output shaft850 is coupled to a drive stem 1252, which is in turn configured to besecured to the cutting assembly 1216. The cutting assembly 1216 includesa rotating disk 1232 and a blade assembly 1256, and the blade assembly1256 includes a cutting blade 830 that is secured to a blade carrier1248. The blade carrier 1248 has a central shaft 1254 and a mounting arm862 that extends outwardly from the central shaft 1254. The cuttingblade 830 is secured to the upper surface of the mounting arm 862 via anumber of fasteners 864. Like the embodiments of FIG. 23-29, therotating disk 1232 is configured to slide vertically relative to thecutting blade 830 to adjust the cutting thickness of the cuttingassembly 1216, as described in greater detail below.

The central shaft 1254 of the blade carrier 1248 has a socket 1258formed in its lower end, and the drive stem 1252 has an upper end 1260that is keyed to match the configuration of the socket 1258. In theillustrative embodiment, the upper end 1260 includes two flat surfaces(not shown) connected at each end by a curved surface (not shown), andthe socket 1258 has a corresponding geometric shape that is sized toreceive the upper end 1260 of the drive stem 1252. When the cuttingassembly 1216 is seated on the drive stem 1252, as shown in FIG. 31, thekeyed upper end 1260 of the stem 1252 is received in the socket 1258 ofthe central shaft 1254. As such, rotation of the output shaft 50 of themotor 14 causes rotation of the cutting assembly 1216.

It should be appreciated that in other embodiments the arrangement ofthe socket and keyed end may be reversed, with the keyed end beingformed on the central shaft 1254 and the socket being defined in thedrive stem 1252. It should also be appreciated that in other embodimentsother methods of attachment may be used to secure the drive stem to thecutting assembly.

As shown in FIGS. 30 and 31, the drive stem 1252 of the food processor1210 includes a center rod 1262 that extends outwardly through anopening 1264 defined in the upper end 1266 of the blade carrier 1248.The aperture 1246 of the sleeve 1234 of the lid 1228 is sized to receivethe center rod 1262 such that the tip 1268 of the center rod 1262 may bepositioned in the aperture 1246 when the lid 1228 is secured to the bowl820, as shown in FIG. 31. Additionally, when the lid 1228 is secured tothe bowl 820, the lower end 1242 of the sleeve 1234 of the lid 1228engages the upper end 1260 of the blade carrier 1248 to seat the bladeassembly 1256 on the drive stem 1252, as described in greater detailbelow.

The rotating disk 1232 of the cutting assembly 1216 includes a centralhub 1270, a planar body 872 extending radially outward the central hub1270, and a rim 874 extending upwardly from the outer perimeter of theplanar body 872. The hub 1270 of the rotating disk 1232 has a sidewall1276 that defines a passageway 1278 extending through the hub 1270. Asshown in FIG. 30, the central shaft 1254 of the blade assembly 1256 ispositioned in the passageway 1278, and the center rod 1262 of the drivestem 1252 extends outwardly through an upper opening 1272 of thepassageway 1278. The hub 1270 also has a pocket 880 defined in thesidewall 1276 that opens into the passageway 1278. The mounting arm 862of the blade assembly 856 is received in the pocket 880, therebytorsionally securing the blade assembly 1256 to the rotating disk 832.In the illustrative embodiment, the central shaft 1254, the mounting arm862, and the hub 1270 are keyed such that the blade assembly 1256 istorsionally secured to the rotating disk 1232. As such, rotation of theoutput shaft 850 causes rotation of the rotating disk 1232 and thecutting blade 830.

The food processor 1210 also includes a thickness adjustment assembly842, which is operable to move the rotating disk 1232 relative to thecutting blade 830. The adjustment assembly 842 includes a two-pieceadaptor 884, a lift device 886 supporting the adaptor 884 and therotating disk 1232, and a gear assembly 888 positioned in the base 812.The lift device 886 is operable to move the adaptor 884 (and hencerotating disk 1232) upwardly and downwardly relative to the base 812 ofthe food processor 1210, and the gear assembly 888 is configured tooperate the lift device 886. As in the embodiment described above inregard to FIGS. 23-28, the food processor 1210 includes an externalcontrol device (not shown) that is configured to operate the lift device886 and the gear assembly 888 to move the rotating disk 1232 upwardlyand downwardly, thereby changing the thickness of food items processedby the food processor 1210.

As shown in FIGS. 30 and 31, the adaptor 884 of the adjustment assembly842 includes an upper shaft 890 configured to be secured to the hub 1270of the rotating disk 1232. The upper shaft 890 has a cylindrical body894 that extends from an upper end 896 to a lower end 898. The upper end896 of the upper shaft 890 has a pair of tabs 900 extending outwardlytherefrom. When the upper shaft 890 is secured to the hub 1270, each tab900 is positioned in a corresponding slot 902 defined in the hub 1270,as shown in FIGS. 30 and 31. In that way, the shaft 890 is secured tothe rotating disk 832 such that rotation of the rotating disk 832 causesrotation of the shaft 890. At the lower end 898 of the shaft 890, aplurality of teeth 910 are formed in the body 894 and are configured toengage a plurality of teeth 918 formed on the lower shaft 892 to therebytorsionally secure the upper shaft 890 to the lower shaft 892.

The upper shaft 890 of the adaptor 884 also includes an inner wall 906that defines a passageway 908 through the body 894. When assembled withthe base 812 and the cutting assembly 1216, the upper shaft 890 ispositioned over the drive stem 1252 and the lower end of the centralshaft 1254 of the blade assembly 1256 such that the stem 1252 and theshaft 1254 are received in the passageway 808 of the upper shaft 890.

As shown in FIGS. 30 and 31, the upper shaft 890 includes a biasingmechanism 920 positioned in the passageway 908, and the biasingmechanism 920 is configured to bias the upper shaft 890 into engagementwith the lower shaft 892. The biasing mechanism 920 includes a sleeve922 positioned in the middle of the passageway 908. When attached to thebase 812, the sleeve 922 has the drive stem 1252 of the motor 814extending therethrough.

The sleeve 922 of the biasing mechanism 920 includes an upper rim 924that contacts the lower surface 926 of the central shaft 1254 of theblade assembly 856 when the upper shaft 890 is secured to the rotatingdisk 832. A flange 928 extends outwardly from the upper rim 924 of thesleeve 922. Similarly, the inner wall 906 of the upper shaft 890includes an inner flange 930 extending inwardly into the passageway 908.A biasing element, such as a spring 932, is positioned between theflanges 928, 930.

To assemble the food processor 1210 for use, the user may operate thethickness adjustment assembly 842 to position the lift device 886 in aposition corresponding to the minimal cutting thickness, as shown inFIG. 30. The user may align the upper shaft 890 of the adaptor 884 inthe bowl 820 and advance the upper shaft 890 downward so that the drivestem 1252 enters the passageway 908 of the upper shaft 890. The user maycontinue to advance the upper shaft 890 downward until the teeth 910 onthe lower end 898 of the upper shaft 890 engage the teeth 918 on theupper end 914 of the lower shaft 892 of the adaptor 884.

The user may secure the upper shaft 890 of the adaptor 884 to the hub1270 of the rotating disk 1232. To do so, the user may align the cuttingassembly 1216 with the drive stem 1252 and advance the cutting assembly1216 downward so that the drive stem 1252 enters the socket 1258 definedin the central shaft 1254 of the blade carrier 1248. The user maycontinue to advance the cutting assembly 1216 downward until the tabs900 of the adaptor 884 are received in the slots 902 defined in the hub1270, as shown in FIG. 30. In that position, the lower surface 926 ofthe central shaft 1254 contacts the upper rim 1224 of the sleeve 1222 ofthe biasing mechanism 920. Because the cutting blade 830 is not fixedaxially, the cutting blade 830 is permitted to move in the directionindicated by the arrow 1280. As shown in FIG. 30, the spring 932 urgesthe cutting blade 830 into a position in which the distance D definedbetween the cutting edge 838 of the cutting blade 830 and the uppersurface 40 of the rotating disk 832 is increased.

The user may attach the lid 1228 to the upper rim 1222 of the bowl 820.To do so, the user aligns the sleeve 1234 of the lid 1228 with the tip1268 of the center rod 1262 of the drive stem 1252. The user thenadvances the lid 1228 downward such that the lower end 1242 of thesleeve 1234 engages the upper end 1260 of the blade carrier 1248. As theuser continues to advance the lid 1228 downward, the bias exerted by thespring 932 is overcome, and the cutting blade 830 is moved downward suchthat the distance D defined between the cutting edge 838 of the cuttingblade 830 and the upper surface 840 of the rotating disk 832 isdecreased. As shown in FIG. 31, when the shell 1230 of the lid 1228contacts the upper rim 1222 of the bowl 820, the distance D definedbetween the cutting edge 838 of the cutting blade 830 and the uppersurface 840 of the rotating disk 832 is relatively minimal,corresponding to the minimal cutting thickness of the cutting assembly1216.

It should be appreciated that the user may also attach the upper shaft890 of the adaptor 884 to the cutting assembly 1216 prior to attachingthe assembly to the lower shaft 892 of the adaptor 884. Additionally, itshould also be appreciated that the food processor 1210 may be assembledwith the lift device 886 in a position corresponding to any cuttingthickness, including, for example, the maximum cutting thickness, ratherthan the minimal cutting thickness as shown in the illustrativeembodiment.

Referring now to FIG. 32, another embodiment of a base (hereinafter base1412) is shown. The base 1412 may be used with, for example, the othercomponents of the food processor 810 described above in regard to FIGS.23-28 or the components of the food processor 1210 described above inregard to FIGS. 30 and 31. The base 1412 includes another embodiment ofa thickness adjustment assembly (hereinafter adjustment assembly 1442).The adjustment assembly 1442 includes a user-control device 1444 that isembodied as a thumbwheel 1446 that can be turned by a user to adjust thecutting thickness of the food processor 810, as described in greaterdetail below.

The base 1412 houses a motor 814 and a control unit. A bowl 820 may besecured to the base 1412, and a lid (not shown) may be secured to thebowl 820. Collectively, the lid and the bowl 820 define a processingchamber 826. Under the control of the control unit, the motor 814 drivesa cutting assembly, such as, for example, the cutting assembly 816,which was described above in reference to FIGS. 23-28, or the cuttingassembly 1216, which was described above in reference to FIGS. 30 and31, to cut food items such as cheeses, meats, fruits, and vegetables inthe processing chamber 826. The base 1412 also includes one or morebuttons, switches, dials, or other types of controls 818. A useroperates the controls 818 to control the operation of the motor 814 andhence the food processor.

The motor 814 includes an output shaft 850 extending upwardly from thebase 812. The output shaft 850 is coupled to a drive stem (not shown),which is in turn configured to be secured to the cutting assembly. Asdescribed above in reference to FIGS. 23-28, the cutting assemblyincludes a cutting blade and a rotating disk configured to move upwardlyand downwardly relative to the cutting blade to adjust the cuttingthickness of the cutting assembly.

The thickness adjustment assembly 1442, like the adjustment assembly 842of FIGS. 23-28, includes a two-piece adaptor 884 configured to becoupled to the cutting assembly and a lift device 886 supporting theadaptor 884. The lift device 886 is operable to move the adaptor 884upwardly and downwardly relative to the base 1412, and, in that way,change the position of the rotating disk of the cutting assemblyrelative to the cutting blade of the cutting assembly, thereby adjustingthe cutting thickness.

The adjustment assembly 1442 also includes a gear assembly 1488 ispositioned in the base 1412. Similar to the gear assembly 888 describedabove in reference to FIGS. 23-28, the gear assembly 1488 is configuredto operate the lift device 886. The thumbwheel 1446 is configured tooperate the gear assembly 1488 (and hence the lift device 886) to changethe thickness of the food items produced by the food processor.

The lift device 886 of the adjustment assembly 1442 includes ascrew-type drive assembly that may be operated to adjust the position ofthe rotating disk of the cutting assembly relative to the base 812. Asdescribed above, it should be appreciated that in other embodiments thelift device may take the form of, for example, a series of rampstructures or cams that slide relative to one another to change thecutting thickness of the cutting assembly. The screw-type drive assemblyincludes an internally-threaded upper sleeve 940 that threadinglyengages an externally-threaded lower sleeve (not shown) such that theupper sleeve 940 may be moved upwardly or downwardly relative to thebase 812 by rotating the upper sleeve 940. For example,counter-clockwise rotation of the upper sleeve 940 may cause downwardmovement of the upper sleeve 940, while clockwise rotation of the uppersleeve 940 may cause upward movement of the upper sleeve 940.

As shown in FIG. 32, the adaptor 884 of the adjustment assembly 1442,like the adaptor 884 of FIGS. 23-28, includes an upper shaft (not shown)that is secured to the cutting assembly and a lower shaft 892 that isconfigured to be torsionally secured to the upper shaft. The lower shaft892 is rotatably coupled to the upper sleeve 940 of the lift device 886.In that way, when the upper shaft is secured to the lower shaft 892, theassembled adaptor 884 (and hence the cutting assembly) is permitted torotate relative to the upper sleeve 940. The lower shaft 892 is fixedaxially relative to the upper sleeve 940 such that upward and downwardmovement of the upper sleeve 940 causes upward and downward movement ofthe lower shaft 892 of the adaptor 884. As described above in referenceto FIGS. 23-28, when the adaptor 884 is assembled and the cuttingassembly is secured thereto, the upward and downward movement of theupper sleeve 940 is thereby translated to the cutting assembly such thatthe rotating disk of the cutting assembly slides relative to the cuttingblade to change the cutting thickness of the cutting assembly.

As shown in FIG. 32, the adjustment assembly 1442 also includes a gearassembly 1488 that is configured to operate the lift device 886. Thebase 1412 has a compartment 960 that is defined by an outer wall 962,and the gear assembly 1488 is positioned in the compartment 960. Thegear assembly 1488 includes a drive gear 1490 and a guide gear 972 thatare pivotally coupled to a platform 964 of the base 1412. The drive gear1490 includes a body 1492 that is pivotally coupled to a platform 964 ofthe base 1412 via a pivot pin 1002. The body 1492 of the gear 1490 has aplurality of teeth 1496 defined on at least a portion of an outersurface 1498 thereof.

The guide gear 972 of the gear assembly 1488 has a body 982 configuredto be rotatably coupled to the platform 964. The body 982 of the gear972 has a plurality of teeth 976 defined on an outer surface 980thereof. A number of the teeth 1496 of the drive gear 1490 areinterdigitated with a number of the teeth 976 of the guide gear 972 suchthat rotation of the drive gear 1490 causes rotation of the guide gear972.

The upper sleeve 940 of the lift device 886 is movably coupled to theguide gear 972. The body 982 of the guide gear 972 includes an opening984 and an inner wall 188 extending downwardly from the opening 984. Aplurality of splines 992 extend inwardly from the inner wall 988 of thegear 972. The upper sleeve 940 of the lift device 886 includes an outersurface 994 that has a plurality of grooves 996 defined therein, andeach groove 996 is sized to receive one of the splines 992 of the gear972, thereby coupling the sleeve 940 to the guide gear 972. As such,rotation of the guide gear 972 causes rotation of the upper sleeve 940relative to the lower sleeve, which results in the sleeve 940translating upwardly or downwardly relative to the base 1412.

As described above, the adjustment assembly 1442 includes a thumbwheel1446 that is configured to operate the gear assembly 1288 (and hence thelift device 886) to change the thickness of the food items produced bythe food processor. In the illustrative embodiment, the thumbwheel 1446includes a grip 1500 defined on a portion of the outer surface 1498 ofthe drive gear 1490. As shown in FIG. 32, the outer wall 962 of the base1412 has a slot 1502 defined therein, and the grip 1500 extendsoutwardly through the slot 1502 such that a user may access the grip1500 to operate the gear assembly 1488.

As shown in FIG. 32, the base 1412 has a plurality of position markings1504 defined thereon. Each position marking 1504 corresponds to anadjustment position of the adjustment assembly 1442, which in turncorresponds to one of a number of preset cutting positions of thecutting assembly. The grip 1500 of the control device 1444 also includesan indicator 1506 that may be aligned with one of the position markings1504 to indicate the present position of the adjustment assembly 1442and hence the cutting position of the cutting assembly. It should beappreciated that the base 1412, like the base 812 described above inregard to FIGS. 23-28, may include a locking mechanism configured toinhibit movement of the thumbwheel 1446 and thereby maintain the cuttingassembly at a particular cutting position.

In use, a user operates the controls 818 to energize the motor 814 torotate the output shaft 850. When the cutting assembly is secured theoutput shaft 850 via the drive stem, rotation of the output shaft 850causes rotation of the cutting assembly. While the motor 814 isenergized, the user may advance food items into the processing chamber826 to be cut by the rotating cutting assembly.

If the user desires to change the cutting thickness during the cuttingoperation, the user may grasp the grip 1500 and rotate the thumbwheel1446. As described above, rotation of the grip 1500 causes rotation ofthe drive gear 1490. As the drive gear 1490 is rotated, the guide gear972 is also rotated, which causes the upper sleeve 940 of the liftdevice 886 to rotate and translate upwardly or downwardly relative tothe base 1412. As described above, the vertical movement of the uppersleeve 940 moves the adaptor 884 and the rotating disk relative to thecutting blade and the base 1412 while the cutting blade remains fixedvertically. In that way, the thickness of food items cut by the cuttingassembly may be adjusted while the cutting assembly is driven by themotor 814.

Referring now to FIGS. 33 and 34, another embodiment of a food processor(hereinafter food processor 1510) is shown. In the food processor 1510,the base 812 described above in regard to FIGS. 23-28 has been replacedby a base 1512 that houses a motor 814 and a control unit. The foodprocessor 1510, like the food processor 810 described above in regard toFIGS. 23-28, also includes a bowl 820 that is secured to the base 1512and a lid 822 that is configured to be secured to the bowl 820.Collectively, the lid 822 and the bowl 820 define a processing chamber826.

Under the control of the control unit, the motor 814 drives a cuttingassembly 816 to cut food items such as cheeses, meats, fruits, andvegetables in the processing chamber 826. In other embodiments, the foodprocessor 1510 may include another cutting assembly, such as, forexample, the cutting assembly 1416, which was described above inreference to FIGS. 30 and 31. The base 1512 also includes one or morebuttons, switches, dials, or other types of controls 818. A useroperates the controls 818 to control the operation of the motor 814 andhence the food processor 1510.

The cutting assembly 816 of the food processor 1510 is driven by themotor 814 to cut food items. The motor 814 includes an output shaft 850extending upwardly from the base 812. The output shaft 850 is coupled toa drive stem 852, which is in turn configured to be secured to thecutting assembly 816. As described above in reference to FIGS. 23-28,the cutting assembly 816 includes a cutting blade 830 and a rotatingdisk 832 configured to move upwardly and downwardly relative to thecutting blade 830 to adjust the cutting thickness of the cuttingassembly 816.

The food processor 1510 includes another embodiment of a thicknessadjustment assembly (hereinafter adjustment assembly 1542) that isoperable by a user to vary the cutting thickness of the cutting assembly816 during a cutting operation. The adjustment assembly 1542 includes auser-operated control device 1544 that is located outside of theprocessing chamber 826 of the food processor 1510. In the illustrativeembodiment of FIGS. 33 and 34, the control device 1544 is embodied as acontrol knob 1546 that is positioned above the controls 818 of the base1512. A shaft 1548 extends inwardly from the control knob 1546 throughan opening 1550 defined in an outer wall 962 of the base 1512. Thecontrol knob 1546 includes a grip 1552, and a user may grasp the grip1552 to rotate the control knob 1546 clockwise or counter-clockwise tochange the distance D defined between a cutting edge 838 of a cuttingblade 830 and an upper surface 840 of the rotating disk 832 of thecutting assembly 816.

The thickness adjustment assembly 1542 also includes a two-piece adaptor884 that is coupled to the cutting assembly 816, as shown in FIG. 33.The adaptor 884 is supported by a lift device 886, which is operable tomove the adaptor 884 upwardly or downwardly relative to the base 1512 ofthe food processor 1510. As described above in reference to FIGS. 23-28,the rotating disk 832 of the cutting assembly 816 is also moved upwardlyor downwardly with the adaptor 884 such that the distance D (and hencethe cutting thickness) is increased or decreased. The adjustmentassembly 1542 also includes a gear assembly 1588 positioned in the base1512. The gear assembly 1588 is configured to operate the lift device886. The control knob 1546 is configured to operate the gear assembly1588 (and hence the lift device 886) to change the thickness of the fooditems produced by the food processor 1510.

The lift device 886 of the adjustment assembly 1542 includes ascrew-type drive assembly that may be operated to adjust the position ofthe rotating disk of the cutting assembly relative to the base 812. Thescrew-type drive assembly includes an internally-threaded upper sleeve940 (see FIG. 34) that threadingly engages an externally-threaded lowersleeve (not shown) such that the upper sleeve 940 may be moved upwardlyor downwardly relative to the base 812 by rotating the upper sleeve 940.

As shown in FIG. 33, the adaptor 884 of the adjustment assembly 1542includes an upper shaft 890 that is secured to the rotating disk 832 ofthe cutting assembly 816, and a lower shaft 892 that is rotatablycoupled to the upper sleeve 940 of the lift device 886. In that way, theadaptor 884 (and hence the cutting assembly) is permitted to rotaterelative to the upper sleeve 940. The lower shaft 892 is fixed axiallyrelative to the upper sleeve 940 such that upward and downward movementof the upper sleeve 940 of the lift device 886 causes upward anddownward movement of the lower shaft 892 of the adaptor 884.

As shown in FIG. 34, the adjustment assembly 1542 also includes a gearassembly 1588 that is configured to operate the lift device 886. Thebase 1512 has a compartment 960 that is defined by the outer wall 962,and the gear assembly 1588 is positioned in the compartment 960. Thegear assembly 1588 includes a drive gear 1590 and a guide gear 1592. Inthe illustrative embodiment the drive gear 1590 includes a worm or screw1594, and the guide gear 1592 is a worm gear 1596 that meshes with thescrew 1594.

The worm gear 1596 of the gear assembly 1588 has a body 1598 that isrotatably coupled to the base 1512. The body 1598 of the gear 1596 has aplurality of teeth 1602 defined thereon. The screw 1594 of the drivegear 1590 also includes a plurality of teeth 1606 that areinterdigitated with a number of the teeth 1602 of the worm gear 1596. Asa result, rotation of the drive gear 1490 causes rotation of the wormgear 1596.

The upper sleeve 940 of the lift device 886 is movably coupled to theworm gear 1596. As shown in FIG. 34, the body 1598 of the worm gear 1596includes an opening 984 and an inner wall 988 extending downwardly fromthe opening 984. A plurality of splines 992 extend inwardly from theinner wall 988 of the worm gear 1596. The upper sleeve 940 of the liftdevice 886 includes an outer surface 994 that has a plurality of grooves996 defined therein, and each groove 996 is sized to receive one of thesplines 992 of the worm gear 1596, thereby coupling the sleeve 940 tothe worm gear 1596. As such, rotation of the worm gear 1596 causesrotation of the upper sleeve 940 relative to the lower sleeve 942, whichresults in the sleeve 940 translating upwardly or downwardly relative tothe base 1512.

The gear assembly 1588 also includes a drive shaft 1510 connected to thescrew 1594. The shaft 1510 has an external gear, such as, for example, aspur gear 1512 attached at an end 1514 thereof. As shown in FIG. 34, thespur gear 1612 has a plurality of teeth 1616 defined thereon. The gearassembly 1588 includes another external gear, such as, for example, aspur gear 1620, which is attached at an end 1622 of the shaft 1548 ofthe control device 1544. The spur gear 1620 has a plurality of teeth1624 defined thereon that are interdigitated with the teeth 1616 of thespur gear 1612 of the drive shaft 1610. In that way, the control knob1546 of the control device 1544 is connected to the gear assembly 1588such that rotation of the control knob 1546 results in rotation of thescrew 1594 and the gears 1596, 1612, and 1620.

In use, a user may operate the controls 818 to energize the motor 814 torotate the output shaft 850. Because the cutting assembly 816 is securedthe output shaft 850 via the drive stem 852, rotation of the outputshaft 850 causes rotation of the cutting assembly 816. While the motor814 is energized, the user may advance food items into the processingchamber 826 to be cut by the rotating cutting assembly.

If the user desires to change the cutting thickness during the cuttingoperation, a user may grasp the grip 1552 of the control knob 1546 androtate the control knob 1546 clockwise or counter-clockwise while thecutting assembly 816 is driven by the motor 814. As the control knob1546 is rotated, the spur gear 1620 on the shaft 1548 acts on the spurgear 1512 of the drive gear 1590 to rotate the drive gear 1590 about itslongitudinal axis 1626. Rotation of the drive gear 1590 causes the screw1594 to act on the worm gear 1596, which results in rotation of the wormgear 1596. As described above, rotation of the worm gear 1596 causesrotation of the upper sleeve 940, and the sleeve 940 (and hence theadaptor 884 and the rotating disk 832) translates upwardly or downwardlyrelative to the base 1512. In that way, the distance D defined between acutting edge 838 of a cutting blade 830 and an upper surface 840 of therotating disk 832 of the cutting assembly 816 may be changed, resultingin thicker or thinner food items.

It should be appreciated that the food processor 1510 may include one ormore position markings that correspond to preset cutting positions forthe cutting assembly 816. It should also be appreciated that the foodprocessor 1510, like the food processor 810 described above in regard toFIGS. 23-28, may include a locking mechanism configured to inhibitmovement of the control knob 1546 and thereby maintain the cuttingassembly 816 at a particular cutting position. In other embodiments, thegear assembly may include other gear arrangements to translate therotation of the control knob 1546 into movement of the rotating disk.For example, referring now to FIG. 35, another embodiment of a gearassembly (hereinafter gear assembly 988) is shown.

Similar to the gear assembly 1588, the gear assembly 1688 is configuredto operate the lift device 886. The gear assembly 1688 is positioned inthe compartment 960 of the base 1512, and the gear assembly 1688includes a guide gear 1690, a rack gear 1692, and a pinion gear 1694that are movably coupled to the base 1512. The guide gear 1690 of thegear assembly 1688 has a body 982 configured to be rotatably coupled tothe base 1512. The body 982 of the gear 1590 has a plurality of teeth976 defined on an outer surface 980 thereof.

As shown in FIG. 35, the upper sleeve 940 of the lift device 886 ismovably coupled to the guide gear 1590. The body 982 of the guide gear1590 includes an opening 984 and an inner wall 988 extending downwardlyfrom the opening 984. A plurality of splines 992 extend inwardly fromthe inner wall 988 of the gear 1590. The upper sleeve 940 of the liftdevice 886 includes an outer surface 994 that has a plurality of grooves996 defined therein, and each groove 996 is sized to receive one of thesplines 992 of the gear 1590, thereby coupling the sleeve 940 to theguide gear 1590. As such, rotation of the guide gear 1690 causesrotation of the upper sleeve 940 relative to the lower sleeve 942, whichresults in the sleeve 940 translating upwardly or downwardly relative tothe base 1512.

As described above, the external control device 1544 of the foodprocessor 1510 includes a control knob 1546 and a shaft 1548 extendinginwardly from the control knob 1546 into the base 1512. The shaft 1548has the pinion gear 1694 of the gear assembly 1688 secured at an end1622 thereof. The pinion gear 1694 is an external gear that has aplurality of teeth 1696 defined on an outer surface thereof.

The pinion gear 1694 of the gear assembly 1688 meshes with the rack gear1692. The rack gear 1692 includes a rectangular body 1700 that isconfigured to slide along a longitudinal axis 1702. The rack gear 1692has a plurality of teeth 1704 defined on one side 1706 of the body 1700and another plurality of teeth 1708 defined on a bottom side 1810. Asshown in FIG. 35, a number of the teeth 1704 of the rack gear 1692 areinterdigitated with a number of the teeth 976 of the guide gear 1690.Additionally, a number of the teeth 1708 of the rack gear 1692 areinterdigitated with a number of the teeth 1696 of the pinion gear 1694.As a result, when the pinion gear 1694 is rotated, the rack gear 1692 ismoved along the axis 1702, thereby causing the guide gear 1690 to rotatesuch that the upper sleeve 940 rotates and translates upwardly ordownwardly relative to the base 1512.

In use, while the cutting assembly is driven by the motor 814, a usermay grasp the grip 1552 of the control knob 1546 and rotate the controlknob 1546 clockwise or counter-clockwise while the cutting assembly 816is driven by the motor 814. As the control knob 1546 is rotated, thepinion gear 1594 of the gear assembly 1688 is rotated. Rotation of thepinion gear 1694 causes the rack gear 1692 to slide along the axis 1702and thereby rotate the guide gear 1690. As described above, rotation ofthe guide gear 1690 causes rotation of the upper sleeve 940, and thesleeve 940 (and hence the adaptor 884 and the rotating disk 832)translates upwardly or downwardly relative to the base 1512. In thatway, the distance D defined between a cutting edge 838 of a cuttingblade 830 and an upper surface 840 of the rotating disk 832 of thecutting assembly 816 may be changed, resulting in thicker or thinnerfood items.

Referring now to FIGS. 36 and 37, another embodiment of a food processor(hereinafter food processor 1810) is shown. In the food processor 1810,the base 812 and the bowl 820 described above in regard to FIGS. 23-28have been replaced by a base 1812 and a bowl 1820 that includes anotherembodiment of a thickness adjustment assembly (hereinafter adjustmentassembly 1842). The adjustment assembly 1842 includes a user-controldevice 1844 that is embodied as a control strip 1846 rotatably coupledto the bowl 1820. The strip 1846 includes a grip 1848 that can beoperated by a user to adjust the cutting thickness of the food processor1810, as described in greater detail below.

The base 1812 of the food processor 1810 houses a motor 814 and acontrol unit. Under the control of the control unit, the motor 814drives a cutting assembly 816 to cut food items such as cheeses, meats,fruits, and vegetables. The base 1812 also includes one or more buttons,switches, dials, or other types of controls 818. A user operates thecontrols 818 to control the operation of the motor 814 and hence thefood processor 1810.

The removable receptacle or bowl 1820 is secured to the base 1812 andhas a removable lid 822 secured thereto. The bowl 1820 has an upper rim1822 and an inner wall 1824 that extends downwardly from the upper rim1822 to define part of a processing chamber 826 where food items may beprocessed by the cutting assembly 816. The removable lid 822 is securedto the rim 1822 of the bowl 1820. In that way, the removable lid 822 andthe bowl 1820 cooperate to define the processing chamber 826.

The bowl 1820 of the food processor 1810 has a lower rim 1826 that ispositioned below the processing chamber 826. The strip 1846 of thecontrol device 1844 is attached to the lower rim 1826, and is configuredto rotate relative to the lower rim 1826. In the illustrativeembodiment, a portion of the strip 1846 is received in a track (notshown) defined in the lower rim 1826 such that the strip 1846 isrotatably coupled to the bowl 1820. It should be appreciated that inother embodiments the strip 1846 may be secured to the bowl 1820 by anycombination of pins, tabs, slots, or openings that permit the strip 1846to rotate relative to the bowl 1820. It should also be appreciated thatin other embodiments the control strip may be rotatably coupled to thebase rather than the bowl or may be a separate component.

The cutting assembly 816 of the food processor 1810 is driven by themotor 814 to cut food items. The motor 814 includes an output shaft 850extending upwardly from the base 812. The output shaft 850 is coupled toa drive stem 852, which is in turn configured to be secured to thecutting assembly 816. As described above in reference to FIGS. 23-28,the cutting assembly 816 includes a cutting blade 830 and a rotatingdisk 832 configured to move upwardly and downwardly relative to thecutting blade 830 to adjust the cutting thickness of the cuttingassembly 1816.

As shown in FIGS. 36 and 37, the adjustment assembly 1842 of the foodprocessor 1810 includes a two-piece adaptor 884 coupled to the cuttingassembly 816, a lift device 86 supporting the adaptor 884 and thecutting assembly 816, and a gear assembly 1888 positioned in the base1812. The lift device 886 is operable to move the adaptor 884 upwardlyand downwardly relative to the base 1812, and, in that way, change thethickness of food items cut by the cutting assembly. The gear assembly1888 is configured to operate the lift device 886, and the control strip1846 is configured to operate the gear assembly 1888 (and hence the liftdevice 886) to change the thickness of the food items produced by thefood processor 1810.

The lift device 886 of the adjustment assembly 1842 includes ascrew-type drive assembly that may be operated to adjust the position ofthe rotating disk of the cutting assembly relative to the base 1812. Thescrew-type drive assembly includes an internally-threaded upper sleeve940 that threadingly engages an externally-threaded lower sleeve (notshown) such that the upper sleeve 940 may be moved upwardly ordownwardly relative to the base 1812 by rotating the upper sleeve 940.

As shown in FIG. 36, the adaptor 884 of the adjustment assembly 1842includes an upper shaft 890 that is secured to the rotating disk 832 ofthe cutting assembly 816, and a lower shaft 892 that is rotatablycoupled to the upper sleeve 940 of the lift device 886. In that way, theadaptor 884 (and hence the cutting assembly) is permitted to rotaterelative to the upper sleeve 940. The lower shaft 892 is fixed axiallyrelative to the upper sleeve 940 such that upward and downward movementof the upper sleeve 840 of the lift device 886 causes upward anddownward movement of the lower shaft 892 of the adaptor 884.

As shown in FIG. 37, the adjustment assembly 1842 also includes a gearassembly 1888 that is configured to operate the lift device 886. Thebase 1812 has a compartment 960 that is defined by an outer wall 1962,and the gear assembly 1888 is positioned in the compartment 960. Thegear assembly 1888 includes a drive gear 1970 and a guide gear 972 thatare pivotally coupled to a platform 964 of the base 1912. A slot 1964 isdefined in the outer wall 1962 of the base 1912, and the drive gear 1970includes a body 1974 that is partially positioned in the slot 1964. Thebody 1974 of the drive gear 1970 is pivotally coupled to a platform 964of the base 1812 via a pivot pin 1002. The body 1974 also has aplurality of teeth 1976 defined on an outer surface 1978 thereof.

The guide gear 972 of the gear assembly 1888 has a body 982 that isconfigured to be rotatably coupled to the platform 964. The body 982 ofthe gear 972 has a plurality of teeth 976 defined on an outer surface980 thereof. A number of the teeth 1976 of the drive gear 1970 areinterdigitated with a number of the teeth 976 of the guide gear 972 suchthat rotation of the drive gear 1970 causes rotation of the guide gear972.

The upper sleeve 940 of the lift device 886 is movably coupled to theguide gear 972. The body 982 of the guide gear 972 includes an opening984 defined in an upper surface 986 and an inner wall 988 extendingdownwardly from the opening 984. A plurality of splines 992 extendinwardly from the inner wall 988 of the gear 972. The upper sleeve 940of the lift device 886 includes an outer surface 994 that has aplurality of grooves 996 defined therein, and each groove 996 is sizedto receive one of the splines 992 of the gear 972, thereby coupling thesleeve 940 to the guide gear 972. As such, rotation of the guide gear972 causes the rotation of the upper sleeve 940 relative to the lowersleeve 942, which results in the sleeve 940 translating upwardly ordownwardly relative to the base 1912.

As shown in FIG. 37, the control strip 1846 includes a ring body 1980that extends around the outer circumference of the wall 1962. The ringbody 1980 has an outer surface 1982 and an inner surface 1984 positionedopposite the outer surface 1982. A plurality of teeth 1986 are definedon the inner surface 1984, and a number of the teeth 1986 areinterdigitated with a number of the teeth 1976 of the drive gear 1970.As such, rotation of the control strip 1846 in either directionindicated by arrow 1990 causes the rotation of the drive gear 1970 andthe guide gear 972. The grip 1848 of the control strip 1846 is definedon the outer surface 1982 of the ring body 1980, and, as describedabove, the grip 1848 may be utilized by a user to operate the adjustmentassembly 1842.

In use, a user may operate the controls 818 to energize the motor 814 torotate the output shaft 850. Because the cutting assembly 816 is securedthe output shaft 850 via the drive stem 852, rotation of the outputshaft 850 causes rotation of the cutting assembly. While the motor 814is energized, the user may advance food items into the processingchamber 826 to be cut by the rotating cutting assembly.

To adjust the cutting thickness while the cutting assembly 816 is drivenby the motor 814, the user may grasp the grip 1848 to rotate the controlstrip 1846. The control strip 1046 acts on the drive gear 1970 andthereby causes the drive gear 1970 to begin rotating. The rotation ofthe drive gear 1970 causes the rotation of the guide gear 972, whichresults in the upper sleeve 940 of the lift device 886 to rotate andtranslate upwardly or downwardly relative to the base 1812. As describedabove, the vertical movement of the upper sleeve 940 moves the adaptor884 and the rotating disk 832 relative to the base 1412 while thecutting blade 830 remains fixed vertically. In that way, the thicknessof food items cut by the cutting assembly may be adjusted while thecutting assembly is driven by the motor 814.

It should be appreciated that the food processor 1810 may include alocking mechanism similar to the locking mechanism 1020 described abovein reference to FIGS. 23-28, which is configured to inhibit movement ofthe control strip 1846 and thereby maintain the cutting assembly 816 ata particular cutting position. Additionally, it should also beappreciated that the bowl or base may include one or more locatingfeatures to guide a user in properly positioning the bowl on the base.The food processor 1810 may also include position markings that indicatethe cutting thickness of the cutting assembly 816.

Referring now to FIGS. 38-39, another embodiment of a food processor(hereinafter food processor 2010) is shown. The food processor 2010includes another embodiment of a base (hereinafter base 2012) andanother embodiment of a bowl (hereinafter bowl 2020). The food processor2010 also includes another embodiment of a thickness adjustment assembly(hereinafter adjustment assembly 2042) that is operable to change thethickness of cut food items produced by the food processor 2010. Tooperate the adjustment assembly 2042, a user rotates the bowl 2020 aboutan axis 2222 relative to the base 2012, as described in greater detailbelow.

The base 2012, like the base 812 described above in reference to FIGS.23-28, houses a motor 814 and a control unit. Under the control of thecontrol unit, the motor 814 drives a cutting assembly to cut food itemssuch as cheeses, meats, fruits, and vegetables. The cutting assembly maybe, for example, the cutting assembly 816, which was described above inreference to FIGS. 23-28, or the cutting assembly 1216, which wasdescribed above in reference to FIGS. 30 and 31.

The base 2012 of the food processor 2010 includes one or more buttons,switches, dials, or other types of controls 818. A user operates thecontrols 818 to control the operation of the motor 814 and hence thefood processor 2010. The motor 814 includes an output shaft 850 that isconfigured to be coupled to a drive stem (not shown), which is in turnconfigured to be secured to the cutting assembly. In that way, drivingforce generated by the motor 814 may be transferred to the cuttingassembly. As shown in FIG. 38, the base 2012 also includes a mountingplatform 2050 configured to receive the bowl 2020 thereon, and theoutput shaft 850 extends upwardly from the mounting platform 2050. Themounting platform 2050 has an outer wall 2052 that extends upwardly froma rim surface 2054 of the base 2012 and an upper surface 2056.

As shown in FIGS. 39 and 40, the bowl 2020 of the food processor 2010has an inner wall 2060 that extends downwardly from an upper rim (notshown) to a bottom wall 2062. The inner wall 2060 and the bottom wall2062 cooperate to define part of a processing chamber 826 where fooditems may be processed by the cutting assembly. A removable lid, suchas, for example, the lid 822 described above in reference to FIGS.23-28, may be secured to the bowl 2020. Collectively, the lid 822 andthe bowl 2020 cooperate to define the processing chamber 826. The bottomwall 2062 also includes an opening 2078 sized such that the output shaft850 and part of the adjustment assembly 2042 may extend therethrough.

The bowl 2020 also includes a lower wall 2064 that is positioned belowthe processing chamber 826. The lower wall 2064 and the bottom wall 2062define a lower chamber 2066 that is sized to receive the mountingplatform 2050 of the base 2012. The bowl 2020 has a handle 2068 thatfacilitates placement of the bowl 2020 on the base 2012, and the handle2068 is received in an opening 2070 defined in the lower wall 2064. Thehandle 2068 has an arm 2072 that extends inwardly from the lower wall2064 to an end 2074. As shown in FIG. 40, the end 2074 of the arm 2072has a plurality of teeth 2076 defined thereon.

Returning to FIG. 38, the upper surface 2056 of the mounting platform2050 has an opening 2080 defined therein. Inner walls 2082, 2084 extenddownwardly from the opening 2080 to define a pocket 2086 in the mountingplatform 2050. The pocket 2086 is sized to receive the arm 2072 of thebowl 2020. The mounting platform 2050 also has a track 2088 defined inthe outer wall 2052, and the track 2088 is similarly sized to receivethe arm 2072. As shown in FIG. 28, the track 2088 is connected to thepocket 2086, and the pocket 2086 and the track 2088 cooperate to form aslot 2090 in the mounting platform 2050.

The thickness adjustment assembly 2042, like the adjustment assembly 842of FIGS. 23-28, includes a two-piece adaptor 884 configured to becoupled to the cutting assembly and a lift device 886 supporting theadaptor 884. The lift device 886 is operable to move the adaptor 884upwardly and downwardly relative to the base 2012, and, in that way,change the position of the rotating disk of the cutting assemblyrelative to the cutting blade of the cutting assembly, thereby adjustingthe cutting thickness.

The adjustment assembly 2042 of the food processor 2010 also includes agear assembly 2188 positioned in the base 2012 Similar to the gearassembly 888 described above in reference to FIGS. 23-28, the gearassembly 2188 is configured to operate the lift device 886 to lower andraise the adaptor 884. The bowl 2020 is configured to engage the gearassembly 2188 so that a user may change the thickness of the food itemsproduced by the food processor 1010 while the cutting assembly is drivenby the motor 814.

The lift device 886 of the adjustment assembly 2042 includes ascrew-type drive assembly that may be operated to adjust the position ofthe rotating disk of the cutting assembly relative to the cutting bladeand to the base 812. The screw-type drive assembly includes aninternally-threaded upper sleeve 940 that threadingly engages anexternally-threaded lower sleeve (not shown) such that the upper sleeve940 may be moved upwardly or downwardly relative to the base 2012 byrotating the upper sleeve 940.

As shown in FIG. 38, the adaptor 884 of the adjustment assembly 2042includes an upper shaft (not shown) that is secured to the cuttingassembly and a lower shaft 892 that is configured to be torsionallysecured to the upper shaft. The lower shaft 892 is rotatably coupled tothe upper sleeve 940 of the lift device 886. In that way, when the uppershaft is secured to the lower shaft 892, the assembled adaptor 884 (andhence the cutting assembly) is permitted to rotate relative to the uppersleeve 940. The lower shaft 892 is fixed axially relative to the uppersleeve 940 such that upward and downward movement of the upper sleeve940 causes upward and downward movement of the lower shaft 892 of theadaptor 884. As described above in reference to FIGS. 23-28, when theadaptor 884 is assembled and the cutting assembly is secured thereto,the upward and downward movement of the upper sleeve 940 is therebytranslated to the cutting assembly such that the rotating disk of thecutting assembly slides relative to the cutting blade to change thecutting thickness of the cutting assembly.

As shown in FIG. 41, the adjustment assembly 2042 also includes a gearassembly 2188 that is configured to operate the lift device 886. Thebase 2012 has a compartment 960, and the gear assembly 2188 ispositioned in the compartment 960. The gear assembly 2188 includes adrive gear 2190 and a guide gear 972 that are pivotally coupled to thebase 2012. The drive gear 2190 includes a body 2192 that has a pluralityof teeth 2194 defined thereon.

The guide gear 972 of the gear assembly 2188 has a body 982 configuredto be rotatably coupled to the base 2012. The body 982 of the gear 972has a plurality of teeth 976 defined on an outer surface 980 thereof. Anumber of the teeth 2194 of the drive gear 2190 are interdigitated witha number of the teeth 976 of the guide gear 972 such that rotation ofthe drive gear 2190 causes rotation of the guide gear 972.

As in the embodiment of FIGS. 23-28, the upper sleeve 940 of the liftdevice 886 is movably coupled to the guide gear 972 such that rotationof the guide gear 972 causes rotation of the upper sleeve 940 relativeto the lower sleeve 942. As described above, the rotation of the sleeve940 results in the sleeve 940 translating upwardly or downwardlyrelative to the base 2012.

As shown in FIGS. 38-41, the food processor 2010 also includes a lockingmechanism 2200 configured to inhibit movement of the bowl 2020 relativeto the base 2012 and thereby maintain the cutting assembly in aparticular cutting position. In the illustrative embodiment, the lockingmechanism 2200 is embodied as a detent device 2202. As shown in FIGS. 39and 40, the detent device 2202 includes a pin 2204 that extendsdownwardly from the bottom wall 2062 of the bowl 2020 and, as shown inFIG. 38, a plurality of notches 2206 that are defined in the uppersurface 2056 of the base 2012. Each notch 2206 corresponds to a presetcutting position of the cutting assembly, and the convex lower end 2208of the pin 2204 is configured to be received in each of the notches 2206as the bowl 2020 is rotated about the axis 2022.

In use, a user may align the arm 2072 of the bowl 2020 with the opening2080 of the base 2012. The bowl 2020 may be advanced downward such thatthe arm 2072 is received in the pocket 2086 and the lower wall 2064 ofthe bowl 2020 is advanced into contact with the rim surface 2054 of thebase 2012. When the arm 2072 is positioned in the pocket 2086, the teeth2076 of the arm 2072 are spaced apart from and not in contact with theteeth 2194 of the drive gear 2190. The user may grasp the handle 2068and rotate the bowl 2020 in the direction indicated by arrow 2198 sothat the arm 2072 is advanced into the track 2088. As the bowl 2020 isrotated, the teeth 2076 of the arm 2072 mesh with a number of the teeth2194 of the drive gear 2190, thereby rotating the drive gear 2190. Therotation of the drive gear 2190 causes the guide gear 972 to rotate. Asdescribed above, rotation of the guide gear 972 causes downward movementof the upper sleeve 940. When the bowl 1220 is rotated to one of thepreset positions, the convex lower end 2208 of the pin 2204 is receivedthe notch 2206 corresponding to that position, and further movement ofthe bowl 2020 is inhibited.

A user may operate the controls 818 to energize the motor 814 to rotatethe output shaft 850. Because the cutting assembly is secured the outputshaft 850 via the drive stem, rotation of the output shaft 850 causesrotation of the cutting assembly. While the motor 814 is energized, theuser may advance food items into the processing chamber 826 to be cut bythe rotating cutting assembly.

If the user desires to change the cutting thickness during the cuttingoperation, the user may lift the bowl 2020 to remove the pin 2204 fromthat notch 2206 and then rotate the bowl 2020 to the next position. Asthe bowl 2020 is rotated, the teeth 2076 of the arm 2072 mesh with anumber of the teeth 2194 of the drive gear 2190, thereby rotating thedrive gear 2190. The rotation of the drive gear 2190 causes the guidegear 972 to rotate. As described above, rotation of the guide gear 972causes movement of the upper sleeve 940 upwardly or downwardly andchanges the thickness of food items being processed by the foodprocessor 2010.

Referring now to FIG. 42, another embodiment of a food processor(hereinafter food processor 2210) is shown. The food processor 2210includes the cutting assembly 1216 and the removable lid 1228, whichwere described above in reference to FIGS. 30 and 31. The food processoralso includes another embodiment of a base (hereinafter base 2212) and aremovable bowl (hereinafter bowl 2220). The food processor 2210 includesanother embodiment of a thickness adjustment assembly (hereinafteradjustment assembly 2242) that is operable to change the thickness ofcut food items produced by the food processor 2010. To operate theadjustment assembly 2242, a user rotates the bowl 2220 about an axis2222 relative to the base 2212, as described in greater detail below.

The base 2212 houses a motor 814 and a control unit (not shown). Underthe control of the control unit, the motor 814 drives the cuttingassembly 1216 to cut food items such as cheeses, meats, fruits, andvegetables. The bowl 2220 is rotatably coupled to the base 812. The bowl820 has an upper rim 2224 and an inner wall 2226 that extends downwardlyfrom the upper rim 2224 to a bottom wall 2228 to define part of aprocessing chamber 2230 where food items may be processed by the cuttingassembly 1216. The removable lid 1228 is secured to the rim 2224 of thebowl 2220. In that way, the removable lid 1228 and the bowl 2220cooperate to define the processing chamber 2230.

As shown in FIG. 42, the bowl 2220 also includes an inner wall 2232 thatdefines a cavity 2234 below the processing chamber 2230. An externalgear 2236 is secured to the inner wall 2232 of the bowl 2220. Theexternal gear 2236 has a plurality of teeth (not shown) defined on aninner surface (not shown).

As described above, the cutting assembly 1216 of the food processor 2210is driven by the motor 814 to cut food items. The motor 814 includes anoutput shaft 850 extending upwardly from the base 2212. The output shaft850 is coupled to a drive stem 1252, which is in turn configured to besecured to the cutting assembly 1216. As described above in reference toFIGS. 30 and 31, the cutting assembly 1216 includes a cutting blade 830and a rotating disk 1232 configured to slide vertically relative to thecutting blade 830.

The food processor 2210 also includes a thickness adjustment assembly2242, which is operable to move the rotating disk 1232 relative to thecutting blade 830. The adjustment assembly 2242 includes a two-pieceadaptor 884, a lift device 886 supporting the adaptor 884 and therotating disk 1232, and a gear assembly 2288 attached to the base 2212.The lift device 886 is operable to move the adaptor 884 (and hencerotating disk 1232) upwardly and downwardly relative to the base 2212 ofthe food processor 2210, and the gear assembly 2288 is configured tooperate the lift device 886.

The lift device 886 of the adjustment assembly 2242 includes ascrew-type drive assembly that may be operated to adjust the position ofthe rotating disk of the cutting assembly relative to the base 812. Thescrew-type drive assembly includes an internally-threaded upper sleeve940 that threadingly engages an externally-threaded lower sleeve 942such that the upper sleeve 940 may be moved upwardly or downwardlyrelative to the base 2212 by rotating the upper sleeve 940.

As shown in FIG. 42, the adaptor 884 of the adjustment assembly 2242includes an upper shaft 890 that is secured to the rotating disk 1232 ofthe cutting assembly 1216, and a lower shaft 892 that is rotatablycoupled to the upper sleeve 940 of the lift device 886. In that way, theadaptor 884 (and hence the cutting assembly) is permitted to rotaterelative to the upper sleeve 940. The lower shaft 892 is fixed axiallyrelative to the upper sleeve 940 such that upward and downward movementof the upper sleeve 940 of the lift device 886 causes upward anddownward movement of the lower shaft 892 of the adaptor 884. When theadaptor 884 is assembled and the cutting assembly 1216 is securedthereto, the upward and downward movement of the upper sleeve 940 isthereby translated to the cutting assembly 1216 such that the rotatingdisk 1232 slides relative to the cutting blade 830 to change the cuttingthickness of the cutting assembly 416.

The gear assembly 2288 of the adjustment assembly 2242 includes a guidegear 2292 that is positioned on a top surface 2294 of the base 2212. Theupper sleeve 940 of the lift device 886 is movably coupled to the guidegear 2292. Like the embodiment of FIGS. 23-28, rotation of the guidegear 2292 causes rotation of the upper sleeve 940 relative to the lowersleeve 942, which results in the sleeve 940 translating upwardly ordownwardly relative to the base 2212.

The guide gear 2292 has a body 2296 rotatably coupled to the base 2212.The body 2296 has a plurality of teeth 2298 defined on an outer surfacethereof. A number of the teeth 2298 of the guide gear 2292 areinterdigitated with a number of the teeth of the bowl 2220 when the bowl2220 is positioned on the base 2212 such that rotation of the bowl 2220causes rotation of the guide gear 2292.

In use, a user may position the bowl 2220 over the output shaft 850 andadvance the bowl 2220 into contact with the base 2212. The teeth of thebowl 2220 mesh with the teeth 2298 of the guide gear 2292. The user maygrasp the bowl handle (not shown) and rotate the bowl 2220 about theaxis 2222. As the bowl 2220 is rotated, the guide gear 2292 is rotated.As described above, rotation of the guide gear 2292 causes downwardmovement of the upper sleeve 940 and hence movement of the rotating disk1232 relative to the cutting blade 830.

A user may operate the controls 818 to energize the motor 814 to rotatethe output shaft 850. Because the cutting assembly 1216 is secured onthe output shaft 850 via the drive stem 1252, rotation of the outputshaft 850 causes rotation of the cutting assembly. While the motor 814is energized, the user may advance food items into the processingchamber 826 to be cut by the rotating cutting assembly 1216. While thecutting assembly 1216 is driven by the motor 814, the user may rotatethe bowl 2220 to move the rotating disk 1232 relative to the cuttingblade 30, thereby changing the cutting thickness of the cutting assembly1216.

It should be appreciated that the food processor 2210 or any of the foodprocessors described above may include a locking mechanism configured toinhibit movement of the bowl relative to the base and thereby maintainthe cutting assembly at a particular cutting position. It should also beappreciated that the gear assembly may include other gear arrangementsto translate the rotation of the bowl into movement of the rotating diskor the cutting blade to adjust the cutting thickness of the cuttingassembly.

Additionally, as described above, the adjustment assemblies may includeelectromechanical components such that the user may adjust the cuttingthickness at the touch of a button while the cutting assembly is drivenby the motor. It should therefore be appreciated that any of theembodiments described above in which the user manually adjusts thecutting thickness of the cutting assembly (e.g., the embodiments ofFIGS. 23-28 and 30-42) may be modified to include electronic means suchas, for example, an electronic motor or other electromechanical device,that change the cutting thickness of the cutting assembly in response tothe user pressing a button or interacting with another control. In suchembodiments, a motor may provide a force which acts on the adjustmentassemblies described above to change the cutting thickness. As describedabove, it should be appreciated that the addition of such electroniccomponents may require additional controls or buttons, such as, forexample, a keypad, to control the operation of the additional electroniccomponents.

There are a plurality of advantages of the present disclosure arisingfrom the various features of the method, apparatus, and system describedherein. It will be noted that alternative embodiments of the method,apparatus, and system of the present disclosure may not include all ofthe features described yet still benefit from at least some of theadvantages of such features. Those of ordinary skill in the art mayreadily devise their own implementations of the method, apparatus, andsystem that incorporate one or more of the features of the presentinvention and fall within the spirit and scope of the present disclosureas defined by the appended claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A food processor comprising: a base having amotor positioned therein; a bowl removably coupled to the base; a lidremovably coupled to the bowl so as to define a processing chamber, thelid having a feed tube that opens into the bowl; a cutting assemblypositioned in the processing chamber and driven by the motor to cut fooditems advanced through the feed tube, the cutting assembly including arotating disk and a blade having a cutting edge that is spaced anadjustable vertical distance from an upper surface of the rotating disk,the cutting edge being positionable between a plurality of user-selectedcutting positions relative to the upper surface of the rotating disk toadjust the vertical distance to produce cut food items of varyingthicknesses corresponding to vertical distances; and an adjustmentassembly comprising (i) a gear assembly positioned in the base, whereinthe gear assembly is configured to move the cutting edge between theplurality of cutting positions to adjust the vertical distance while thecutting assembly is driven by the motor, and (ii) a user-operatedcontrol device configured to operate the gear assembly to move thecutting assembly between the plurality of cutting positions to adjustthe vertical distance, and the thickness of cut food items.
 2. The foodprocessor of claim 1, wherein: the user-operated control devicecomprises a thumbwheel.
 3. The food processor of claim 2, wherein: theadjustment assembly includes a sleeve rotatively coupled to the base;and wherein movement of the thumbwheel operates the gear assembly androtates the sleeve.
 4. The food processor of claim 3, wherein: rotationof the sleeve in a first direction causes upward movement of the uppersurface of the rotating disk relative to the cutting edge, and rotationof the sleeve in a second direction causes downward movement of theupper surface of the rotating disk relative to the cutting edge.
 5. Thefood processor of claim 4, wherein: the gear assembly comprises: (i) afirst gear including a first plurality of teeth, the first gear beingmoveably coupled to the sleeve such that rotation of the first gearcauses rotation of the sleeve, and (ii) a second gear including a secondplurality of teeth interdigitated with the first plurality of teeth suchthat rotation of the second gear causes rotation of the first gear. 6.The food processor of claim 5, wherein: the first gear is a worm gear.7. The food processor of claim 5, wherein: the user-operated controldevice includes a grip formed on the second gear, the grip beingoperable by a user to rotate the second gear.
 8. The food processor ofclaim 5, wherein: the user-operated control device includes a ringhaving a third plurality of teeth defined on an inner surface, the thirdplurality of teeth being interdigitated with a number of the secondplurality of teeth such that rotation of the ring causes rotation of thesecond gear.
 9. The food processor of claim 8, wherein: the ring has agrip formed thereon operable by a user to rotate the ring; the bowlincludes a lower wall and the ring is rotatively coupled to the lowerwall of the bowl.
 10. The food processor of claim 1, wherein: theuser-operated control device includes a lever extending outwardly fromthe base and movable relative to the base, the lever being coupled tothe gear assembly such that movement of the lever relative to the basecauses the gear assembly to rotate the sleeve.
 11. The food processor ofclaim 1, wherein: the user-operated control device includes a shaftextending outwardly from the base and a control knob coupled to theshaft, wherein rotation of the control knob causes the cutting edge tomove between the plurality of user-selected cutting positions to adjustthe vertical distance.
 12. A food processor comprising: a base having amotor positioned therein; a removable bowl coupled to the base; aremovable lid coupled to the bowl so as to define a processing chamberhaving an upper compartment and a lower compartment, the lid having afeed tube that opens into the bowl; a cutting blade positioned in thebowl and driven by the motor to cut food items advanced through the feedtube; a rotating disk having an upper surface, wherein at least aportion of the upper surface is movable relative to the cutting blade toadjust the vertical distance therebetween, and wherein the upper surfaceand the cutting blade are configured such that food items insertedthrough the feed tube are urged into contact with the upper surfacewhile being cut by the cutting blade, and wherein the thickness of thepieces of food items being cut is determined by the vertical distancebetween the upper surface and cutting blade, and wherein the rotatingdisk is disposed between the upper compartment and a lower compartmentof the processing chamber; and an adjustment assembly operable to moveat least the movable portion of the upper surface of the rotating diskrelative to the cutting blade to adjust the vertical distancetherebetween and the thickness of pieces of food being cut, theadjustment assembly including a user-operated control device that ismovable by a user to adjust the vertical distance, and wherein theadjustment assembly is configured to retain at least the movable portionof the upper surface of the rotating disk at any one of a plurality ofnon-equal positions relative to the cutting blade, and to prevent upwardand downward movement of at least the movable portion of the rotatingdisk at any one of the plurality of non-equal positions relative to thecutting blade while the food processor is being used to cut food items.13. The food processor of claim 12, including: a ramp positioned belowthe cutting blade to guide food items from the upper compartment intothe lower compartment.
 14. The food processor of claim 13, wherein: theupper surface of the rotating disk is upwardly and downwardly movablerelative to the cutting blade.
 15. The food processor of claim 12,wherein: the user-operated control device is positioned above therotating disk.
 16. The food processor of claim 12, wherein: theuser-operated control device is positioned on the base.
 17. The foodprocessor of claim 16, wherein: the user-operated control devicecomprises an external lever that is movable to adjust the distance. 18.The food processor of claim 12, wherein: the user-operated controldevice includes (i) an internally-threaded control knob coupled to theblade and (ii) an externally threaded sleeve coupled to the rotatingdisk and positioned in the control knob, and wherein rotation of thecontrol knob in a first direction causes upward movement of the rotatingdisk, and rotation of the control knob in a second direction causesdownward movement of the rotating disk.
 19. The food processor of claim12, wherein: the user-operated control device comprises a user-operatedpin that is movable between (i) a first position in which the rotatingdisk is prevented from moving upwardly and downwardly relative to thecutting blade, and (ii) a second position in which the rotating disk ispermitted to move upwardly and downwardly relative to the cutting blade,and wherein the rotating disk includes a sleeve extending downwardlyfrom a lower surface thereof, the sidewall of the sleeve including afirst plurality of teeth, and wherein an outer surface of the pin has asecond plurality of teeth extending therefrom and wherein a number ofthe first plurality of teeth are engaged with the second plurality ofteeth when the user-operated pin is in the first position.
 20. The foodprocessor of claim 12, wherein: the adjustment assembly is positioned inthe base, the adjustment assembly including a screw-type drive assemblycomprising an externally-threaded first sleeve and an internallythreaded second sleeve positioned over the first sleeve; the rotatingmember comprises a rotating disk that is supported by the second sleeve;rotation of the second sleeve in a first direction causes upwardmovement of the second sleeve and the rotating disk, and rotating of thesecond sleeve in a second direction causes downward movement of thesecond sleeve and the rotating disk; the adjustment assembly furthercomprises a gear assembly positioned in the base and coupled to thesecond sleeve, the gear assembly being configured to rotate the secondsleeve relative to the first sleeve, the gear assembly including firstand second gears, the first gear having a first plurality of teethengaging a second plurality of teeth of the second gear; theuser-operated control device includes a lever extending outwardly fromthe base and positionable between a plurality of adjustment positionsrelative to the base, the lever being coupled to the second gear suchthat movement of the lever between the plurality of adjustment positionscauses rotation of the second sleeve relative to the first sleeve tomove the cutting assembly between the plurality of cutting positions;and including: a locking mechanism to inhibit movement of the lever. 21.The food processor of claim 12, wherein: the adjustment assemblycomprises a gear assembly comprising first and second gears having firstand second pluralities of teeth, respectively, wherein the gear assemblyis operated by the user-operated control device; and wherein theuser-operated control device is selected from a group consisting of (i)a control knob having a grip and a shaft extending inwardly from thecontrol knob into the base, (ii) a grip formed on the second gear, (iii)a ring having a grip and a plurality of teeth defined on an innersurface of the ring that engage the second plurality of teeth, and (iv)a thumbwheel positioned in a slot defined in the base.